A mother has called for all special schools to have CCTV after her 13-year-old non-speaking and autistic son was kicked and pushed by a teaching assistant. “To see that man attack him in a place he thought was safe – it was just horrendous,” the mother said. The entire assault was caught on camera at Tettenhall Wood School in Wolverhampton, where Tobie is a pupil. Tobie’s attacker, William Kevin Clifford, 61, of Wolverhampton, pleaded guilty to child cruelty and was given a suspended sentence of nine months.
Tobie tried to crawl away but the teaching assistant followed him and kneed him in the back. After seeing evidence of physical marks and bruises on Tobie’s body, the mother called for all vulnerable children’s settings to have CCTV in the corridors, classrooms, and playgrounds.
Beth Morrison, founder of Positive and Active Behaviour Support Scotland, supports over 4,000 families across the UK – the majority of whom have come to her because their child has come home from school with unexplained injuries. She said CCTV would protect children with complex needs who cannot tell their parents if something happened to them. Charlotte said Tobie’s entire world has changed and he struggles to trust anyone but he is “very resilient”.
The Association of School and College Leaders said that privacy and cost were among the issues schools had to consider, and serious incidents like this were rare. However, campaigners have taken a petition to the Scottish Parliament but their call to make surveillance mandatory was rejected over concerns about the balance between privacy and protection. “We cannot get justice without CCTV,” said Morrison
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