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Children face triple blow when bullied

The Advisory Centre for Education (ACE) has warned that if schools do not act quickly and effectively to stamp out bullying it can spiral out of control and become a triple blow for families.

The centre says the problem is compounded because, firstly, the child suffers bullying at school and, secondly, the parent feels the school isn’t doing enough so keeps their child at home. The child misses out on their education and, rather than dealing with the real issue, the school or Local Authority instead threaten the parent with prosecution. The family faces more stress and the child falls further behind in their schooling.

‘Many schools simply don’t respond quickly or effectively enough to put a stop to bullying. This puts a massive amount of pressure onto entire families and can lead to huge problems,’ said Jenny Edlington, an advice worker at the charity. ‘We often hear from parents who are so concerned about their child’s safety that they have removed them from school and now face criminal charges. This is an unacceptable situation.’

ACE receives over 6,000 calls to its advice lines each year and in the past six months 12 per cent of those calls have discussed bullying.

Earlier this year two senior judges criticised the London Borough of Sutton for taking a case against the parents of a bullied girl who refused to go to school all the way to the high court.

Parents who are worried about any aspect of their child’s education can call ACE for advice on 0808 800 5793. Lines are open from 2-5pm every weekday.