Earlier this year Francesca, a 13-year-old student, killed herself after being suspended for two days from her private South London school. The school was aware that Francesca had a history of mental illness and suicidal thoughts, but it failed to take these matters into account when enforcing the disciplinary action.
The Mirror UK reports that Francesca was disciplined for stealing a craft knife from a design and technology classroom so that she and a friend could become ‘blood sisters’.
The Southwark Coroner’s Court in London this week criticised the school for failing to consider how excluding the young student would affect her despite its knowledge that she had attempted an overdose six months prior and had had a troubled relationship with her parents.
In Southwark Coroner’s Court Coroner Lorna Tagliavini criticised the school for failing to fully implement school policy when it came to taking disciplinary action for Francesca’s misbehaviour.
The school had previously been made aware of Francesca’s self-harming behaviour and suicidal thoughts. This disclosure, from the then 12-year-old student, prompted the school to place her name on a ‘red flag’ list, however the school failed to inform the girl’s parents because it believed that her mental health was improving. The ‘red flag’ list is a list that is maintained to indicate to teachers which students are vulnerable and need to be treated sensitively.
The school’s failure was that despite placing Francesca on the ‘red flag’ list, her mental state and history of vulnerability were not considered when the disciplinary action was taken. This, according to the Coroner, indicated that ‘the first part of the policy was followed and then the school staff did not follow the second part of the policy’.
The school failed to take into account the individual circumstances of the ‘behaviour incident’ and the Coroner found that ‘the school’s failings on that part contributed to the events that occurred.’
The school is described by The Mirror as a prestigious and ‘highly selective’ grammar school in South London and Francesca was described by teachers at the school as ‘academically gifted’ and a very bright student concerned about her grades. Because of Francesca’s concern for her grades, it was suggested to Francesca and her father during a meeting with a teacher the day after Francesca had stolen the knife that Francesca would not be suspended until the end of the week of exams which she was about to complete. This move appeared to be both a practical and compassionate decision by the teacher given the student’s particular circumstances and in line with the school’s ‘red flag’ policy.
However, when the matter came before the head teacher it was decided that Francesca would be immediately excluded, with no further inquiries, despite the head teacher having never met with Francesca or her parents. The Coroner heard evidence at the inquest from the deputy head teacher who stated that this was blatantly against behaviour and exclusion policies and an internal exclusion should have been considered and discussed. Three days later Francesca took her own life.
The Coroner in her verdict criticised the school for failing to follow through with any further steps after Francesca was placed on the ‘red flag’ list. It was found that the act itself of putting the student on the list indicated that the school was somewhat aware of the Francesca’s difficulties.
The Mirror reported that despite sufficient information about Francesca’s vulnerable state being available to ‘anybody who cared to check the computer’, the head teacher failed to take Francesca’s mental health into consideration when determining her punishment. The Coroner stated that ‘it would not have taken a great deal of effort to find out what her difficulties were and how to deal with her at school’ and the head teacher should have been made aware of these matters.
This is a tragic case of a young girl’s lost fight with depression and anxiety. However it also shines a light on the shortcomings of the school’s disciplinary and student duty of care policies.
It is not unusual for schools to have disciplinary policies that take into account an individual student’s history of behaviour and academic records at the school. Likewise, it is not uncommon for schools to have some form of alert system or heightened awareness register of students who may be vulnerable or struggling with issues at home. This can include a ‘safety and care plan’ policy which focuses on student’s mental health condition, or offering counselling to students who have been subject to disciplinary action.
As this case demonstrates, it is the interaction of these two policies that can make a significant difference to students’ lives and to the implementation of school policies and procedures. The head teacher was unaware of, and failed to inquire about, Francesca’s history of mental illness and difficult home life which led to a punishment that affected Francesca in a much more profound way than it perhaps would any other student.
In the end, it comes down to having practical policies and procedures that are operational on a day to day basis and not merely in theory. It also is a matter of the duty of care owed to each student by every member of staff at every school in Australia. This duty involves a balance between managing risks to students and enforcing school rules, and ensuring the physical and emotional wellbeing of students – a balance that the school in this case unfortunately, and with devastating consequences, got wrong.
Support is available for anyone who may be interested in information on suicide prevention by phoning Lifeline 13 11 14; Mensline 1300 789 978; Kids Helpline 1800 551 800.