THREE cheers for Healthwise's 'Prevent Bullying' leaflet (Citizen: August 19); children from parental care and crowded together in schools need all the protection we can give them.

But the many leaflets and anti-bullying schemes now available can only do so much: if the schools themselves are not totally committed to the prevention of assaults on their pupils are at real risk.

As a local parent, with children at a local school with a good reputation, I have come to see that there is a scandal of unprotected schoolkids at even the best schools. Serious assaults committed by final year pupils at exam time are going unpunished because schools say the pupils are about to leave, or already have. Next year's top forms know they take out their exam tensions on vulnerable eleven-year-olds and school 'can't touch me - I'm leaving anyway.' The assault my son suffered was potentially deadly, yet school treated it as an internal school matter. If he had been an adult on the street it would have been a serious police matter. Why should an eleven-year-old have LESS protection than an adult because he/she is in school uniform? I suspect that many other parents have complained about serious attacks upon their children only to be told the same thing: we can't touch them - they're leaving.

Leaving with the knowledge that they can pick on the vulnerable in our society and escape the consequences.

It is time that education authorities dealt with this properly and stopped trying to sweep it under the carpet. The odd detention is not good enough. Other countries have 'Safe School' policies that treat their children like proper citizens. Closer contact with the police and making assaults and thefts automatic police matters would prevent schools trying to talk down their crime rates (and take pressure off already overburdened teachers).

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