College denies parents' charges on son's bullying

The headmaster of St Edward's College yesterday denied allegations made by the parents of a schoolboy who claimed that the school had failed to stop other boys from bullying their son.

In a counter protest filed in the First Hall of the Civil Court, headmaster Anthony Bonello claimed that the allegations made by the schoolboy's parents in a judicial protest were completely unfounded.

He explained that when the incident was reported to the school authorities, the case was investigated and the alleged bullies, who were two and not six as claimed by the parents, were punished and suspended from the school.

For reasons unrelated to the case, the parents of the two boys chose to refer them to a psychologist and a psychiatrist until they were fit to return to school.

Throughout the process the school authorities had abided by the law.

The headmaster added that the boy's parents had not informed him that their son was bullied even after his timetable had been altered to avoid the possibility of his being bullied. The change had been made with the parents' consent.

Moreover, the headmaster said, the boy did not follow the instructions he gave him as from the beginning of the semester and which were aimed at protecting him. In fact, the boy had been specifically instructed to remain close to the headmaster's office where he could keep an eye on him during the morning and afternoon break in order to ensure that the other students did not approach him.

The headmaster said it was important to point out that the alleged bullies had been suspended from the school a second time and again referred to specialists on the third day of the semester. This was because the school offered the best service it could to students to ensure they were getting all the help needed.

He forcefully denied the allegations and held the parents of the boy responsible for the damages suffered by the school.