Ben, Cam and Daniela

Daniela describes herself as ‘lucky to have three amazing sons’ who are intelligent, funny, loyal and incredibly loved.

Two of her boys, Ben and Cam, are autistic and have attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. They are both in primary school. Daniela said Cam is ‘absolutely thriving’ at his school and Ben is doing well at his.

However this wasn’t the case at their previous school. Daniela told the Royal Commission that Ben and Cam continue to experience trauma and often talk about what happened to them.

Ben and Cam attended a small local private school.

‘Looking back there were a number of incidents which were “red flags” for what was to come,’ Daniela said.

On one occasion Cam was distressed and becoming dysregulated. He went into his sensory tent but continued to make noise. The teacher opened the flap of the tent, put her face in the gap and told him to do his schoolwork. Cam yelled at her to leave and told her to stop touching the tent. The teacher refused and continued to tell Cam to do his work. Cam punched her in the face.

The school suspended him.

‘I still feel shocked that my son could be suspended from within a sensory tent – this should not be possible.’

One day Ben was constantly flicking a light switch and couldn’t stop. After yelling at him the teacher grabbed his arm. Ben hit the teacher and ran away. He was suspended and counselled on how to make better choices next time. Daniela said counselling should include the teacher and focus on building the skills of everyone involved.

On another occasion Ben was in trouble and ran. The principal chased him, cornered him in a courtyard and locked the door. The principal told Ben he could come back inside when he calmed down. Ben picked up a tree branch. The principal told him not to bother – the windows were smash proof. Ben proceeded to smash the windows.

‘At the time my husband and I bent over backwards apologising and expressing our horror at what he had done. Looking back, I am far more horrified that my frightened seven-year-old was locked in a courtyard by the school principal.’

Daniela said the school didn’t seem to understand autism. One time the principal told her Cam’s lack of eye contact was ‘evidence of a lack of remorse for misbehaviour and that he was avoiding taking responsibility’.

The principal also blamed Daniela and asked multiple questions about how she disciplined the boys at home. He told her husband the boys were much better behaved when she was out of town for work.

After the school had suspended the boys numerous times and restricted their attendance, Daniela decided to appeal a decision. She said the school was ignoring the behaviour response plans when they chased, grabbed, yelled at and whistled at the boys.

What followed was a sustained campaign to get the boys to leave the school. Daniela said she was targeted for advocating strongly for her boys. A child safety officer became involved and conducted a risk assessment on Daniela and the boys.

‘It was one of the most difficult things I had ever read. It seemed to focus on me more so than my children. It portrayed me as a hostile and aggressive parent who made baseless claims and criticisms. There were multiple unsubstantiated accusations in this document.’

Daniela and her husband felt they had no choice but to move towns.

‘I wake often in the night, feeling frustration at the injustice of it all. I feel as though we were run out of town and that the “bad guys” won,’ Daniela said.

‘Things have drastically improved for us since we left and my children are happier and safer in their new school environments, despite this we all have ongoing trauma related to the way in which we were treated at our former school.’