A Lower Hutt high school has been singled out by students and parents for not doing enough to support victims of cruel hand-written notes on bathroom walls.
Newshub was approached by the concerned relative of a female student at Taita College in Lower Hutt. The student (who will be called "student A"), who the relative did not name to protect her, has been the recipient of vicious graffiti notes written by other students.
Student A had been named and told to kill herself in the note scribbled on a wall. The abhorrent message tells Student A to join another who committed suicide last year.
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The image was taken by Student A and posted to her Snapchat account, which is how the concerned relative became aware of the situation. The names in the image have been blurred at the relative's request.
The relative of Student A, who is 29, told Newshub the school is "not supporting" the student, and have "told her that she will be suspended if she retaliates."
When given the opportunity to respond to these allegations, Taita College Principal Karen Morgan told Newshub the school "cannot comment on specific allegations as the privacy of our students and their families is very important to us."
However, she said any allegations of bullying are taken seriously and are "fully investigated". She said students found to be responsible for bullying are held accountable for their actions.
"Rebuilding relationships that have been damaged by students' actions is a priority and many of our staff are trained in restorative practice," she said.
But the concerned relative of Student A told Newshub not enough is being done to support victims of bullying at the school. "I think the school needs to be held accountable in regards to helping their students," she said.
"These kids, they need the support, and if the principal and the teachers are saying, 'Sorry we can't help you,' but they're going to support [the bullies] through their anger issues, that's not acceptable - they're not the victims here."
Blaming the victim
Another Taita College student (who will be called "Student B"), who says she has been stood down from the school since April, approached Newshub in October. She also had photographic evidence to support she'd been bullied by other students.
The reason Student B was stood down is because she retaliated to bullies, she claims.
"When I started school on Wednesday morning I went to the toilets and saw graffiti on the wall about me just like the graffiti found the day before," Student B wrote in a letter to the school, which was obtained by Newshub.
Student B discovered graffiti written on a bathroom wall describing her by name as a "fat pig". She internalised this while at school, also putting up with further alleged verbal attacks by other students.
Student B eventually lost her temper and punched another student, she says. "Throughout all of this [the student accused of bullying] was still calling me names similar to what was written on the toilet walls," she told Newshub.
"Out of everything that had happened I know it wasn't right to hit but I felt I was not being heard from the teachers [and] I was not once asked how I was feeling before and after the incident," she said.
"I felt lonely and sad and I didn't know who to trust and who to talk to."
Student B's mother told Newshub she had approached the principal in January, before the altercation, to inform her about another student who was bullying her daughter.
She says she explained Student B's side of the story to the principal Ms Morgan, and left the school feeling "content and confident" that the school would act in her daughter's defence.
But in early February, the mother said Student B "came home in a very alarming state" and was "embarrassed and extremely emotional due to her finding some very nasty comments made about her on the toilet walls in two separate blocks" of the school.
The mother says she reached out to Ms Morgan for help, but claims the principal did not show much interest in her concerns. Then, on February 14, she says she received a phone call from the school informing her of the fight Student B had been involved in.
"I found [Student B] at around 3:30pm and she was absolutely distraught and upset about the incident she was involved in," the mother told Newshub.
"I feel as though this could have been prevented and the communication between myself and the school were most definitely not taken seriously."
"Not once have Taita College made an effort to shut down bullying, nor do they even have any procedures put in place for bullying," the mother claims.
Ms Morgan told Newshub the school's most recent Education Review Office (ERO) report says the school is "welcoming and inclusive" with an "orderly and supportive environment which supports teaching and learning".
She said in almost all cases "families work with the school on an appropriate resolution, response and a pathway forward."
"Very occasionally, despite many attempts by the school to reach a shared understanding of what has happened, a family is dissatisfied with the school's response and takes a different view about what should happen."
Tackling bullying in schools
Newshub approached the Ministry of Education to find out how the Government is working towards tackling bullying in schools.
Rates of bullying in New Zealand are high compared with many other countries, according to the 2015 Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) Wellbeing Report.
The Education Ministry's Wellbeing at School survey last year found that 15 percent of children ranging from year 4 to year 13 reported being bullied at school at least every week.
Katrina Casey, deputy secretary sector enablement and support at the Ministry of Education, says the Education Review Office plays a "key role" in ensuring all school boards are meeting their legal obligations.
This involves inspecting the school's policies and procedures on the provision of a physically and emotionally safe environment for all students and staff, including a specific focus on bullying.
"Our schools are responsible for setting and administering their own student behaviour management policies, including bullying, to help meet their obligation of providing a safe physical and emotional environment for their students," Ms Casey told Newshub.
If a parent does have a concern about the wellbeing of their child at school, she said, "We encourage them to make use of the school's formal complaints process in the first instance."
"If they remain concerned after that process, they can contact our local office for advice."
"All children and young people have the right to feel safe, secure, accepted and valued," Ms Casey added.
"To achieve this, boards of trustees, school leadership and staff, students, parents, whānau and communities all need to work together to successfully address bullying."
Tackling Bullying: A guide for parents and whānau provides information for parents, carers and whānau to help them recognise the warning signs of bullying and how to respond.
Where to find help and support:
- Need to Talk? - Call or text 1737
- Lifeline - 0800 543 354 or (09) 5222 999 within Auckland
- Youthline - 0800 376 633, text 234, email talk@youthline.co.nz or online chat
- Samaritans - 0800 726 666
- Depression Helpline - 0800 111 757
- Suicide Crisis Helpline - 0508 828 865 (0508 TAUTOKO)
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