carrieq Report post Posted May 24, 2007 Today at school ds was kept in his timeout room by a chair on the outside jammied against the handle. He was alone in the room. The playleader from his After School Club went in to get him as school staff said he was too aggressive. She found him in tears so got him up and walked him out. As they were going past his teacher she said that ds shouldn't be in this school , he needed to be in a mental school. I have not heard anything from the school, info from ASC and their incident form. I am raging. This is a child protection issue in my eyes. At the moment I think my course of action is to get schools version and place concern with child protection dept. Am I doing the right thing or is there anything else I should do? Carrie Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Clare63 Report post Posted May 24, 2007 Oh my God Carrie that is disgraceful, I am totally horrified.......I just don't know what to say, its so shocking <'> <'> <'> Clare x Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
caren Report post Posted May 24, 2007 OMG thats terrible your poor son and you , your doing the right thing ( sat here mouth wide open) thats disgraceful Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bagpuss Report post Posted May 24, 2007 Carrie, that is appalling What an atrocious way to treat your child I'd be down the school first thing....and don't just leave it with them to deal with, take the complaint as far you can. Thank goodness you have a witness, hope they back you all the way, take care <'> Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bullet Report post Posted May 24, 2007 That is appalling Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Brook Report post Posted May 24, 2007 OMG Carrie This is absolutely terrible, very distressing for your boy, and what about the safety aspect as well, what if there was a fire!!!!!! Outrageous...!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Hope you get to the bottom of it.. Brook Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Frangipani Report post Posted May 25, 2007 Hi Carrie, This is certainly an offence worth reporting the Child Protection services etc. No child should ever be treated in this manner, especially a Special Needs child. All schools have behaviour management rules to follow if things go pear shaped, this is disgusting and all I can say is get a statement from the witness. What was this teacher thinking????? What is this teachers problem????? NO parent would want their child in the care of this teacher fullstop!!! Just remember we are all with you in spirit when you seek justice. Your poor little one could have been traumatised out of ever wanting to go to school again because of this, and how dare they make comments as they did about a mental school. Thinking of you <'> <'> <'> Good luck, stay strong. F xx Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
KarenT Report post Posted May 25, 2007 That is appalling and definitely a child protection issue. TBH I'd be tempted to remove my child from the school immediately if anything like that was to happen, and definitely make a formal complaint against the teacher involved. We all need to have a certain amount of trust in the people we leave our children with. I wouldn't leave a pet goldfish with a woman with that attitude. Hope you're feeling better this morning, and ds isn't too much the worse for his experience. Karen x Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bard Report post Posted May 25, 2007 (edited) Today at school ds was kept in his timeout room by a chair on the outside jammied against the handle. He was alone in the room. The playleader from his After School Club went in to get him as school staff said he was too aggressive. She found him in tears so got him up and walked him out. As they were going past his teacher she said that ds shouldn't be in this school , he needed to be in a mental school. I have not heard anything from the school, info from ASC and their incident form. I am raging. This is a child protection issue in my eyes. At the moment I think my course of action is to get schools version and place concern with child protection dept. Am I doing the right thing or is there anything else I should do? Carrie Def. a child protection issue, and unprofessional conduct on the part of the school staff. How long was he in there alone? What if he had decided to self-harm? What if he had injured himself accidently whilst in his melt down? Their attitude smacks of the Victorian at its very worst. How dare she treat him like some kind of insensate rabid beast? How dare she describe any school for children as a mental school? That's the kind of comment B gets from the more stupid and ignorant members of his Y7 class, and it is usually dealt with by the staff as unacceptable. He may have needed time out in a safe place, but he should have been with someone who had a duty of care for him. You need to complain to everyone who can change this, they obviously thought it was ok, so what's to stop it happening again, to him or to any other child like him? It could so easily have been my son, had he been in that school. You must formally complain, not just for your child, but to prevent this happening to others in the future. Edited May 25, 2007 by Bard Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pumpkinpie Report post Posted May 25, 2007 I agree with every thing said here. I would definetley complain to everyone. It is ridiculous if your son is behaving like that there is a reason. The school is failing him. Especially when you wouldnt have hard about it execpt from the out of school worker - thatnk good for her commonsense Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
di30 Report post Posted May 25, 2007 OMG that is real bad !!!!!! I remember the last year of the juniors my son was accidently locked in the small demountable, it was a very hot sunny day, he couldn't open all the windows as they had safety locks, he said he only went back in quick to get a drink and his inhaler, went to go back out and realised he was locked in. He said he was banging hell into the door and windows, but as this was a separate building nobody could hear him. It was an hour and half later they all returned from concert practice, and didn't notice he wasn't there !! We went nuts when we found out, and my son said the staff just laughed it off !! My hubby went mad, went down the school and said this was not a laughing matter, another reason is for safety reasons, such as fires etc and with my son being asthmatic !!! He did threaten to report them, they soon realised how serious we was !! I do hope your boy is ok 'bless him' this experience scared my son that much he was petrified of returning back. They will have to be careful what they are doing, this is serious !! Good luck with this, and give your son a cuddle from us all on here, tell him how brave he was, 'bless him'. Luv Di xx Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
peppa Report post Posted May 25, 2007 OMG!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm livid for you this treatment is barbaric and most definatley a child protection issue, definatley needs persuing for the safety of your child and others, however i doubt i'd want to take my child back into that environment. I'd also want to find out if this is a isolated incident. How is your son after this incident? I really hope this hasn't traumatised you all too much. I'm sending you all the cyber support i can and hope this teacher in question is severley reprimmanded for her treatment of your son, in fact i don't think she should be allowed to teach if this is the way children in her care are treated! If this was my child i think i'd be taking this as far as possible and seeking legal advice. Im certainly sending you my support, let us all know how you get on. Loadsa luv xx Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
David Matthew Baker Report post Posted May 25, 2007 That is really bad. When I was at the special school they weren't even allowed to remove a handle from the inside of a door (I.E. just pushing on door would have opened it.) They would have liked to remove the handle as one of the students frequently went in there and pulled on the handle so that no one could get in to remove him from the room. The idea of blocking a room is very much a no no. I don't think anyone would ever have locked someone in a room. I certainly would consider complaining to the school. I would be very annoyed if a school I was working at did such things. Hope you manage to sort this out. <'> <'> <'> Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
smiley Report post Posted May 25, 2007 Carrie <'> I agree with everyone else - i'd be furious - and be sure to send copies of every/any letters you send (and recieve) to all the relevant peeps. It is a serious child protection issue - regardless of if he was being agressive or not. <'> <'> Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
hev Report post Posted May 26, 2007 how are you both today? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
summertime Report post Posted May 26, 2007 Thats awful, if anyone did this in our school we would expect to be hauled up in front of the disciplinary committee. Id complain to the school and also write to the governing body to express my concerns. staff shouldn't be making comments like that either especially in front of your son, thats so unprofessional Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
carrieq Report post Posted May 28, 2007 (edited) I finally managed to speak to the Head late on Friday afternoon, after trying 5 times throughout the day. She said she was not aware of any such situation but was out of school at the time, as was the Deputy and should feel assured that nothing like this would happen. I told her about the incident form saying otherwise and that I am withdrawing permission for ds to be put in time out until this matter is resolved. It is Monday and I am still waiting on a reply as she apparently hadn't spoken to members of staff on Friday. I have a meeting with school staff and the Head of Behaviour Support for the authority tomorrow to discuss alternatives to time out as I had put them in a difficult situation not allowing them to use it. The girl from After School Club who told me about it and showed me the form has been suspended for telling me. She is in touch with the Care Commission and has a lawyer and handed in a grievence form. Am I right in thinking that under Data Protection I have a right to see all written evidence on my child? I feel awful for the girl who was acting correctly alerting me to the situation but is now being punished for her actions. Carrie Edited May 28, 2007 by carrieq Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Frangipani Report post Posted May 28, 2007 not allowing them to use it. The girl from After School Club who told me about it and showed me the form has been suspended for telling me. She is in touch with the Care Commission and has a lawyer and handed in a grievence form. Am I right in thinking that under Data Protection I have a right to see all written evidence on my child? I feel awful for the girl who was acting correctly alerting me to the situation but is now being punished for her actions. Carrie OMG I cant believe they would suspend her. You two need to stick together on this. Fight it through. The thing is your child would have come home and told you anyway, how could they try and cover this up, it looks like they are trying to. Maybe this isnt the first time they have done it. There are a few teachers on here that may know the system and what to do. Hopefully, they may also have some advice that you could pass onto this woman that advised you. I would be ringing the Board of Education and making a formal complaint on your behalf and your child and this lady. Thats the procedure in Aussie, I imagine it would be similar over there. Be patient someone will help. I know Summertime is a teacher and I think Curra said she was a teacher perhaps you could PM them for suggestions. Good luck, thinking of you and yours <'> Fxx Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
summertime Report post Posted May 28, 2007 OMG thats awful I was expecting you to post a message to say that the member of staff responsible for locking him in had been suspended not the one who passed on the info Im not sure about the legalities of passing on the info but I'll make inquiries and get back to you, but I would certainly make a formal complaint, ask the school for a copy of their complaints procedure (they have to give it to you) and then write to the governing body outlining all the information you have, including what you have been told by the member of staff and your son. cc a copy to your LEA that way they wont be able to brush you off. I'd also contact your local parent partnership, google your county and parent partnership and you should get their number, they are there to support you as a parent of a child with SEN. There needs to be a formal investigation into this or the staff will feel they can do this to any child and they can't, not only should they not be locking children into rooms but in my opinion making remarks like that is also a disciplinary issue. Summer x Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bagpuss Report post Posted May 29, 2007 I finally managed to speak to the Head late on Friday afternoon, after trying 5 times throughout the day. She said she was not aware of any such situation but was out of school at the time, as was the Deputy and should feel assured that nothing like this would happen. I told her about the incident form saying otherwise and that I am withdrawing permission for ds to be put in time out until this matter is resolved. It is Monday and I am still waiting on a reply as she apparently hadn't spoken to members of staff on Friday. I have a meeting with school staff and the Head of Behaviour Support for the authority tomorrow to discuss alternatives to time out as I had put them in a difficult situation not allowing them to use it. The girl from After School Club who told me about it and showed me the form has been suspended for telling me. She is in touch with the Care Commission and has a lawyer and handed in a grievence form. Am I right in thinking that under Data Protection I have a right to see all written evidence on my child? I feel awful for the girl who was acting correctly alerting me to the situation but is now being punished for her actions. Carrie Unbelievable Carrie.....good luck with taking this further <'> Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
summertime Report post Posted May 29, 2007 Ok ive made some enquireies about data protection and the summary as I see it would be this... All data covered by the Data Protection Act (basically everything personal, be it academic, home background etc) should be treated in accordance with the Act - with extreme care! The school will have a policy for retention and dispersal of all protected information and should have a designated DP officer. On the face of things, it sounds as if the ASC has acted in breach of that policy (and probably the act itself) and therefore rightfully suspended. Yes you as a parent would have the right to be informed of an incident involving your son, but not necessarily to see the incident report (which may contain other sensitive information) and the information should have probably come from the SMT (HT usually responsible for DPA compliance). Since the 2004 Children's Act, it should be noted that children's child protection needs have priority over data protection and I would consider this a CP issue. Whilst the Freedom of Information Act 2000 allows the public to access all types of information held ? whether published or not ? it is subject to a limited range of exemptions including personal information and commercially sensitive information and is probably therefore not applicable. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
carrieq Report post Posted May 29, 2007 Thank you for looking all that up for me. Its working out which battle to fight first!! I have a meeting with school later this morning and I ahve contacted the Care Commission who have said I am entitled to see the form but need to apply in writing so I will do this. I did copy the form after I was given it but haven't told ASC I did this. Thanks again Carrie Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
jomica Report post Posted May 29, 2007 (edited) Hi Carrie - Just seen this thread, and like everyone else I am horrified. I am a Chair of Governors and, if this had happened in our school, I would have been inclined to discuss with the HT and our personnel service the immediate suspension of everyone who had anything to do with the locking in, pending further investigation. Suspension is a neutral act which allows investigation. In the same circumstances I would also expect to see your formal complaint in writing without delay, because this is the only way that I could investigate. While ever I have nothing to go on, it is only hearsay and I can do nothing about that. As a parent I'd be reporting this matter to the Chair of Governors (don't write to all the governors because this would mean that they couldn't carry out an appeal investigation if it came to that) and copying it to the Director of Education. I would also be writing to Ofsted - who are now able to "swoop" on a school as a result of a parental complaint - see www.ofsted.gov.uk for details. I may even have discussed the matter with the police and/or a solicitor to see whether any criminal act had taken place. I'm certain that disability discrimination should be one of the things you are investigating. I think I would also be calling an emergency review of the my son's statement of SEN and withdrawing my child from school until it had taken place. I would be wanting to know about whether the LEA and others felt it was permissible to lock my son up - which clearly it isn't. Good luck - I hope some of my ramblings help. Edited May 29, 2007 by jomica Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pumpkinpie Report post Posted May 29, 2007 I am apauled that the girl has been suspended for acting responsibly. She has shown much more common sense than the teachers in question. I would be following jomikas advice and writing a letter of complaint immediatley - before the meeting. Thye are protecting themselves and closing ranks because they know the teacher is in very hot water for her outrageous comments. Dont let them soft soap you, the fact she has been suspended show a complete lack of care for your child and I very much doubt you will get the truth out of them, I d expect them to play dirty and blame everything on your son. What would have happened if he had had a fit or been injured whilst he was locked in? I wouldnt go to any meetings without someone with me keeping notes or taperecording the meeting. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
curra Report post Posted May 30, 2007 Hi Carrie, What happened to your son is appalling! You have every right to complain and take it to the Governors and the LEA! I would go with Jomica's advice and make a formal written complain to the Chair of Governors with a copy to the LEA. The girl who informed you of the incident was unfairly suspended but I don't know what you as a parent could do . It's good for her that she has a lawyer. I think that you have a right to see the incident form, don't let the school fob you off. You also have your son's words of what happened and they must take this matter seriously. How did the meeting go today? Good luck!! Curra Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
lynyona Report post Posted May 30, 2007 Omg that is absolutely terrible for your son. And i do also feel for the girl who told you what a disgusting way to treat them both.Hope you get it sorted out soon lynn Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pumpkinpie Report post Posted June 4, 2007 How are you getting on? <'> Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
carrieq Report post Posted June 4, 2007 Not really any further on. School unable to give me their version of events as it is in the hands of the authority legal dept. Have formally requested details from school and after school club so still waiting!! Carrie Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
cmuir Report post Posted June 4, 2007 (edited) That's outrageous! That teacher shouldn't be a teacher - clearly lacks compassion and understanding. I'd contact the headteacher in the first instance and request in writing a written report of the events which led up to your son being held like that. Give them a timescale to get back to you - 5 working days is realistic. If you've heard nothing contact the Education Department (names can be supplied if you PM me!). I'd kick up such a stink and would consider contacting the papers as a last resort). No child should be treated in that way and that teacher shouldn't be in their job. Try and keep your chin up. Caroline. NB - Sorry I'm bad for not reading the full chain of posts! Edited June 4, 2007 by cmuir Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pumpkinpie Report post Posted June 4, 2007 This seeems to be takinga long time bearing in mind the seriousness of what has happened. If you have not put your request in writing I would do so now and put in a timescle for their reply ie 5 working days. Have you spoke to ipsea, if not I would asap Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pumpkinpie Report post Posted June 7, 2007 Any news? <'> Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
carrieq Report post Posted June 7, 2007 No news. They have 40 days by law to respond so at moment its a waiting game. Am going to contact ds social worker to see what else should be being done. Carrie Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
soraya Report post Posted June 7, 2007 Today at school ds was kept in his timeout room by a chair on the outside jammied against the handle. He was alone in the room. The playleader from his After School Club went in to get him as school staff said he was too aggressive. She found him in tears so got him up and walked him out. As they were going past his teacher she said that ds shouldn't be in this school , he needed to be in a mental school. I have not heard anything from the school, info from ASC and their incident form. I am raging. This is a child protection issue in my eyes. At the moment I think my course of action is to get schools version and place concern with child protection dept. Am I doing the right thing or is there anything else I should do? Carrie Is this a mainstream school or a special school? If it is mainstream at least you have a witness who heard the teacher say he shouldnt be there, which is all ammunition to fight the LEA with should you want to change to a decent school!! You poor things how awfull to hear such a hurtfull comment. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
wishingwell Report post Posted June 8, 2007 <'> <'> Carrie <'> <'> I am deeply shocked by this but what goes on in some schools is beyond beleif. This was child abuse and they could have traumatised your son which could lead to a lasting affect. When the situation got out of hand did they phone u to explain what had happened and to come in or is this common practice in there punishment policy to lock children up! If this was my son I would not stop until everyone heard but first get the paper work started and keep a copy of everything. Get advice from ispea speak to a solicitor. The school are dragging there heels at your expencise to see what action you are going to take, this is a very serious situation. Is your son in or out of school. Imagine what they would do if it was u abusing your child. Social services, police, authorities of every kind would be involved, and no time would be wasted. I know it is very hard to take this on, on top of everything else, we never seem to get a break. If u need any help just ask we are here to help and support u. Wishing u all the best. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Shnoing Report post Posted June 9, 2007 Disgraceful!!! If such a thing had happend to my child, I would be seeing a lawyer although I'm a lawyer myself in order to make no mistakes. You should file all your complaints in writing. In addition to a police inquiry you could think about suing the teacher in order to get financial compensation for a (possible) degradation of your child's state of health. And for the insulting language. Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dooday24 Report post Posted June 9, 2007 that is absolutly disgusting sending u all loads of these <'> <'> <'> <'> <'> love donnaxxxxxxxx Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dooday24 Report post Posted June 9, 2007 that is absolutly disgusting sending u all loads of these <'> <'> <'> <'> <'> love donnaxxxxxxxx Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
pumpkinpie Report post Posted July 17, 2007 Hows it going ? Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
