Zayden and Thad
Content Warning: These stories are about violence, abuse, neglect and exploitation and may include references to suicide or self-harming behaviours. They may contain graphic descriptions and strong language and may be distressing. Some narratives may be about First Nations people who have passed away. If you need support, please see Contact & support.
Zayden, almost a teenager, has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Born with a hearing impairment, he needed extensive speech therapy to learn how to speak.
Zayden attended a number of religious primary schools.
In year one, other students bullied him because he couldn’t ‘speak properly,’ said his father Thad.
A few years later Zayden had an accident and sustained serious head trauma. He became blind in one eye and deaf in one ear for a period of time.
While recovering, Zayden returned to school. Two students in the year above bashed him and knocked him unconscious because of his disability.
Thad told the Royal Commission the school ‘didn’t do anything’.
A few weeks later the same group of boys attacked Zayden’s older brother.
Thad and his wife attempted to raise their concerns with teachers and the principal, but the response was ‘appalling’.
There was no action or interest at all and the couple felt that they were ‘made to feel like [they] were the problem’.
‘We found that the school was trying to manage the victims whilst not managing the bullies.’
Thad decided to move Zayden to a different school.
The school told him to ‘stay silent’ about the bullying or they wouldn’t provide a letter of recommendation.
Students and teachers at the new school bullied Zayden, and his mental health deteriorated.
Thad made a formal complaint to the school.
‘The principal denied the complaints and then threatened to exercise disciplinary action against my wife and me if we chose to pursue the complaints. We found this to be quite extraordinary, and we found it to be counterintuitive and counter to any of their policies.’
Thad then complained to the regional director of education about the violence and bullying in both schools.
The regional director referred the matter to an independent body.
However the body was not independent but closely associated with one of the schools.
‘We were never told who was investigating. We have never received a copy of the conclusions. We were only told that three of our complaints out of, I think, approximately 15 were upheld. We don’t know what occurred in terms of any consequences at the school for any of the perpetrators or any of the culture at the school.’
The body referred Thad’s enquiries back to the school.
He then contacted the regional director but never got a response.
‘They made it extremely difficult to even communicate with them. So, they basically shut the door on us.’
Zayden is now at a different non-religious school.
‘We’ve lost our community, we’ve lost our friendships.’
Disclaimer: This is the story of a person who shared their personal experience with the Royal Commission into Violence, Abuse, Neglect and Exploitation of People with Disability through a submission or private session. The names in this story are pseudonyms. The person who shared this experience was not a witness and their account is not evidence. They did not take an oath or affirmation before providing the story. Nothing in this story constitutes a finding of the Royal Commission. Any views expressed are those of the person who shared their experience, not of the Royal Commission.