ALBURY parents are calling for a school to review its disciplinary process after their son’s face was scratched by another student.
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Belinda Moore said her son Corey, 7, left his classroom at Wewak Street School with some other students on August 30 after a classmate had a seizure.
She was at the school visiting the principal at the time, talking about a behavioural plan for Corey.
Corey’s classroom teacher then called her to break up a fight between her son and another student.
“Corey was angry and throwing rocks at another child,” she said.
“When I got close to him to break it up I noticed the lacerations on my son’s face and I thought ‘no wonder he is angry’.
“I had to hold him back.
“I said I wanted the boy suspended but they said they wouldn’t suspend him.”
Mrs Moore and her husband Darren admit their son has behavioural issues.
“If it was Corey who hurt the other child he would have been suspended,” Mrs Moore said.
Corey was born with two holes in his heart, a missing pulmonary valve and congenital heart disease.
He was also later found to have a condition which hinders his breathing.
He is still living with his airway and heart condition, as well as autism, attention deficit-hyperactivity disorder, oppositional defiant disorder, anxiety and global developmental delay.
He also has some brain damage.
Mrs Moore said her son had been suspended from the school seven times due to his behavioural issues.
“The rules for one should be the rules for everybody else,” Mrs Moore said.
The parents said the school had already separated Corey from the other student by putting them in different classrooms.
They will also not be allowed to spend time in the same playground.
Mr Moore said while he was happy the school had taken action, he was disappointed the other student was not suspended.
“I don’t want him expelled – every kid has a right to an education,” he said.
“I just hope future incidents can be avoided and there is a suspension if somebody is nastily wounded.”
Mr Moore said the school needed to review its disciplinary process to ensure the safety of all students in the future.
“Unfortunately it is an environment where there are kids with special needs and behavioural problems,” he said.
Mr Moore said he was concerned because Corey did not want to return to school.
“He is not sleeping as well as he has in the past,” he said.
“It has definitely has some subconscious impact.”
A NSW Department of Education spokesman said the department was aware of the situation and accepted that a difficult situation between two students with disabilities was handled appropriately.
“The school has worked with both students and their parents following the incident,” he said.
