A dinner lady who was sacked for mentioning a bullying incident to a child's parents has won her unfair dismissal case.
Carol Hill, 60, witnessed seven-year-old Chloe David being tied to a fence and whipped with a skipping rope by four children at Grey Tey primary school near Colchester in Essex.
Assuming the school had reported the incident to the child's parents, Mrs Hill later mentioned it to them. Chloe's parents had been informed by the school that their daughter had suffered the rope burns on her wrist and whip marks on her legs in a 'minor accident', with no mention of the bullying.
I have few issues with this story.
WTHeck? What sort of parent swallows that the wrist rope burns and whip marks on their 7 year old's legs were the result of an minor accident. Just exactly what kinda unthinking idiot believes that fairy tale just because they have been programmed to trust the lying, covering their behinds from liability, school official who told them so? I am, as they say, Gob-smacked...
Well of course the school had to make an example of the concerned employee who innocently spoke the TRUTH to the parents. They can't have interactions between school officials, students and parents that is honest and above board now can we? People might question what is really going on in those aptly named institutions that they daily entrust their children to..
4 comments:
Oh fun. But sadly it reminds me of how I found out my son was hurt by another student when he was 7. My daughter was sick one morning and I went over to the neighbour to ask if they could take my son with them when they dropped their 10 yr old son off. The dad said 'Oh sorry, he isn't going to school this week because he was suspended'. I just thought 'oh ok, way to be nonchalant about your TEN yr old being suspended' and went back home. I asked my son about it, if he knew why the boy was suspended and he said "Yeah, he hit me over the head with his hard lunch kit the other day and it took 4 teachers to pull him away and then he was hitting the teachers too".
I was like what????????? cos no one told me (including my son, but he was only 7 and they seem to have short memory spans, especially after being smacked over the head with full, metal lunch kits!). But it only got worse - he said that he felt really sick to his stomach after and they let him lay down in the sick room. WTH??????????
1. Why wasn't I called and told my son was hit over the head and then felt sick??
2. Why wasn't he taken to a doctor (either by me, or a staff member) to be sure all was okay?
3. Why was I not told about this incident when I picked him up?
4. Why did my neighbour not tell me who his son had hit, when he knew d*mn well it was my son.
I called the school and tore a strip off everyone who talked to me (secretary, principal, and teacher). They were very apologetic and said they each thought someone else had told me. I said I didn't give a hoot who thought what, but that I work with children as well and know there is protocol to follow and as soon as he felt nauseous (if not beforehand), I should have been phoned and he should have seen a doctor. DUH! As it happens, he was alright obviously, but what if I sent him to bed that night, totally oblivious, and he didn't wake up? I still feel sick and angry when I think about it, and that was 6 years ago.
Or there was the time at a summer camp where my son was out in 34C weather for 4 hours, didnt get a drink of anything, and then threw up when they got back to the camp room and they just let him lay down and go to sleep. I was spitting mad fuming when I picked him and was told about it. The dunces didnt even think of heat stroke or heat exhaustion. No that was not about being bullied, but in the general scheme of how things are supposed to be so much better for our kids these days cos we 'know better', we have protocol and rules to follow up the wazoo, yet people are still idiots. Why?
Hi Kez,
Been a busy place here this weekend. :O)
Of course they have protocaols to stick to but I think in areas where they may have any liability issues the Prime Directive has become. If they don't ASK we don't TELL.
I simply have NO confidence in these institutions to put my child's welfare ahead of their goals. Negligence and bullying of the students by the representatives of the "system" is an all to common practice.
I had a kind of funny conversation with a grandmother at the bus stop a couple weeks ago. She was going on about how her grand-daughter's school deals 'so well' with bullying because they disciplined some grade 5 boys who were tormenting and physically hurting some grade 2 girls. I listened, but it wasn't until after the bus came and we sat apart that I realized that somehow these boys were still able to hurt the girls outside at recess, where they are supposed to be supervised, and it wasnt until one of the girls sacked (literally) one boy that she was able to get away and 'find' a teacher.
If they are still bullying and still hurting kids on school property (I know this school, there is no where to hide in the playground, so they should have been in full view of any teachers), how is the school 'doing so well' with the bullying issue?
I know it's not easy, it's not as simple as having eagle eyes and seeing everything, but at my kids' school, the teachers were a big orange vest on supervision and are not just standing along the wall, they are positioned in various areas right amongst the kids. I have never seen them milling around chatting any time I have been there.
Anyway it was just ironic. Yes the boys were dealt with (actually suspended!) but that was after the fact and it took a 7 yr old girl's good aim to stop the physical attacks (wrestling-style).
We cannot stop all the fights, they are going to happen, but they have suspended kids before and obviously it hasnt helped much. I tell ya if I ever found out my kids were hurting others at school, I would be dragging them by the ear to the other child's home myself but sadly not enough parents get involved after school either.
Interesting story Kez,
Like I have said I have no confidence that teachers can do anything substantial about bullying because they spend a good part of the day bullying children themselves.
My hubby ( he worked the night shift)and a couple of stay at home parents tried to start up an outdoor physical activity program at our school. Boys were not even allowed to play soccer (some one might get blocked or tripped) or base ball ( you have to tag another child with the ball to get them out. yes really) and these games violated the NO CONTACT policy of the school. So these parents got together and presented to the Prince that they would organize and supervise very lunch a game to make sure it stayed clean fun. Oh no couldn't have parents walking Willy nilly on the school grounds trodding on the teachers bailiwick. The boys and rambunctious girls would just have to make do with complete and total NO CONTACT, liability don't cha know.......
Not excusing what the boys in your story were doing in any way shape or form, but they do not provide an outlet for actual childhood energy. It's like they are begging for behavioural problems. Dumb bunnies.
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