A TEENAGE bullying victim has been left terrified of leaving her home after her blonde hair was covered in red paint.

The incident, which has resulted in a 15-year-old girl being excluded from school, has prompted calls for staff to be appointed to deal specifically with bullying problems.

Rose Cornthwaite, of Slaidburn Drive, Accrington, said her daughter Kerry has been left depressed and traumatised because of physical and verbal abuse at Mount Carmel High School, Accrington.

The latest incident began when a pupil verbally abused Kerry during a physics lesson and threw a rubber at her.

Kerry then walked out of the lesson and later had her hair spray-painted outside school. The girl responsible for the verbal abuse has since been excluded from the school and police are investigating the incident.

But the school has yet to take any action over the spray paint incident because it happened outside school. Kerry's mother said she had previously been called names in the playground and was picked on after school which often resulted in her arriving home in floods of tears.

The problems of bullying have been highlighted nationally by cases involving teenagers committing suicide rather than face bullies.

Mrs Cornthwaite said: "Kerry is terrified of going out alone now and the doctor has prescribed her anti-depressants.

"She has lost the ability to concentrate and I am concerned that this will effect her education as she is taking her GCSEs this year.

"It would certainly help if schools had a mediator who was not an ordinary member of staff that pupils could speak to in confidence about their fears."

Katrina Ryan, headteacher of the school, said that the school has a wide range of measures in place for pupils who are being bullied, including a monitoring programme by the youth and community service, with one-to-one sessions for 'pupils at risk'.

This includes children who have difficulties mixing with others, those who are susceptible to bullying and children with difficult home circumstances.

There is also a box in the learning resources centre where pupils can deposit confidential comments or concerns relating to bullying and senior prefects as well as heads of year that students can look to for help and support.

She added that another factor was children coming forward to report incidents of bullying.

She said: "This matter was brought to the school's attention last week and since then we have monitored the situation and followed the appropriate procedures.

"It appears to have been sparked over a boy who the two girls were interested in. It has been dealt with very quickly and effectively and the girl in question has been excluded until after the Easter holidays.

"She will then return if we have a guarantee from her parents that this situation will not manifest again.

"This sort of situation is very rare and in the three-and-a-half years I have been at the school there has only been six incidents.

"I would also welcome an additional mediator to help with bullying in order to minimise the damage that can be caused. And I feel there needs to be counselling for the bullies to identify the underlying problems that contribute to their behaviour."

Hyndburn MP Greg Pope said: "This young girl has my sympathies. Bullying needs to be stamped out and it must be made clear that it is unacceptable.

"I can see the benefits of having a mediator of this type but can also see that there would be some practical difficulties in financing one in every school just in Hyndburn. But it is worth looking into."

Police confirmed that an incident of alleged assault at the school had been reported and that the matter was being investigated.

Sgt Rob Evans, of Accrington Police, said: "We do take incidents of bullying seriously as do the school who are primarily investigating the circumstances of this case."

Nobody from Lancashire County Council was available to comment.