Peggy Atkinson of Piallamore said she pulled her sons Coen and Rory from the school last year after Coen had been repeatedly bashed.

In separate incidents, Mrs Atkinson said Coen had his head smashed against a wall, his head repeatedly smashed into a desk in class and on several occasions was punched in the playground.

She said over a period of a year at the school Coen went from being a bright, outgoing, sports-loving youngster to a boy who suffered from stress and vision problems and refused to get out of bed in the morning and dress for school.

Mrs Atkinson said despite repeated complaints to school principal Ena Olennick and to then deputy principal Phil Bellis, nothing was done.

?I wasn?t even informed by the school when he had been severely bashed,? Mrs Atkinson said.

?Coen was so stressed and physically ill, I had no choice but to send him to another school,? she said.

The Atkinson family moved to Piallamore three years ago and Coen and younger brother Rory were enrolled in Nemingha Public School, but before long Coen started coming home complaining of being bullied.

?At the time I thought I would let it ride and hoped that it would go away. But when I found out that he had his head smashed against a wall, I complained,? Mrs Atkinson said.

?I know he (Coen) would not be the one starting any fights. It?s just not his nature. I complained to the principal Ena Olennick but nothing happened.

?Coen was again attacked, punched and hit. I complained again to the principal. Nothing was done so I made a complaint to Tony Windsor (then State Member for Tamworth) who phoned the department?s regional inspector.

?I had a meeting with the principal again but was offered no support. In desperation I went to the police.

?I left message after message and when they finally got back to me and I went to see them, I was told there was nothing they could do.

?Coen was told (by police) that if he was hit again then he should hit back twice as hard because he was allowed to protect himself.?

Mrs Atkinson said she was horrified by the suggestion, having raised her children to be tolerant and to avoid violence.

Then (in fourth term) Coen was bashed again, and badly, with his head smashed repeatedly into a desk during class.

He was taken to Tamworth Base Hospital and fortunately x-rays showed no fractures but he was seriously traumatised by the incident. Mrs Atkinson complained again to then deputy principal Phil Bellis and was told that the offender had been suspended for three days.

?I decided then that Coen was no longer safe at the school. I pulled him out and Rory at the end of the year, and they?re now both very happy at Kootingal Public School, even though they

have to travel an extra two hours a day.