7yr old scared of shouting primary teacher

[MotheringKings]

Since starting year three in September last year (same school) my now 8 year old son has stopped wanting to go. He became very withdrawn in the mornings and in the evenings he would have big melt downs, crying screaming and hurting himself and others. We are currently seeking medical support and he has special educational needs which the school have referred us for (only last week). Since October we have been pursuing a complaint against the teacher that my son said she had hit him several times and it hurt a lot. There were three separate occasions and he can note the date, lesson and body part that was touched. I realise this was a serious allegation and we handled it sensitively when broaching the school, making sure they knew we wanted to resolve things informally and that we knew our son's description was open to interpretation. However they were very defensive, gaslighting my son even saying 'there is no shouting in our school'. My son has been traumatised by the whole experience and daren't speak up now. We followed the schools complaints procedure through to the end but to no avail. Same dead end with LADO. We now have a recording of this teacher not just shouting constantly but BELLOWING and making children cry and kids sit on the floor. Do you think we can play this to the headteacher?

Who took the recording and where was it recorded?

I’d be looking for a different school.

If she hit your child, why wouldn't you go straight to the police?

You may want to report your own original post and have it edited; you seem inadvertently to have typed your son's name. I hope things go well for you.

I'd play that to the head, yes.
If they do nothing/continue to gaslight, take it to the governors?

Who made that recording?

Twll us more about how you got the recording. But if you have proof, then you absolutely should persue it with a big complaint. Teacher should be sacked and the kids should get compensated with apologies and treats/therapy. They've gone through trauma and abuse and not been believed! Devastating!

I am not sure how hitting is 'open to interpretation'
Where they suspended while LADO investigated?

Really?

I’d be very interested to hear where this recording came from before I assumed a child had gone through trauma and abuse.
If a member of staff is accused of hitting a child they would be suspended, LADO informed and an investigation started. It would take weeks if not months to carry out.

A teacher hit your child???

Thanks for all your replies. Yes we did report and involve LADO but apparently it is the head teacher's decision as to what constitutes a referral. We didn't contact the police because after seeking legal advice they said the police wouldn't help if there were no visible marks. We have been viewing other schools and home schooling in the interim but he went back to school temporarily whilst the teacher in question was off sick for a few weeks. When she reappeared back at school the school failed to follow the safety procedures but in place for him such as having someone check on him in class and someone being present in the classroom. So, we put a voice recorder in his clothes. That's how we have heard the shouting which is an extreme volume and very aggressive. If other children are at risk of verbal abuse, even if i move my child, I feel like I have a duty to protect them too. I have requested a meeting with the head but no response as yet.

I knew a teacher like this and like you parents complained and nothing was ever done. Good for you for trying to sort this out. Let us know how you get on.

@MotheringKings so LADO weren't involved?
Surely as I understand it you made a complaint, statements would be taken, headteacher would then Involve LADO and then they make a decision.
So did LADO decide there was no case to answer?
Teacher suspended and then returned after enquiry?
Then you taped teaching talking/ shouting?

However they were very defensive, gaslighting my son even saying 'there is no shouting in our school'.

But what did they respond about the
hitting? Surely that is far more concerning!

LADO are useless when it comes to school complaints. Move your son asap OP. You will never get anywhere with this. The gaslighting you've already received tells you everything you need to know.

Re the recording yes I would play it to the head, but not until after your son has left. You will probably get a lot of flack for it but there's children at risk here and you're doing the right thing.

R.e. the hitting. Put everything in writing and send to head of governors. This is a safeguarding issue and clearly the head will not do their job. You need to progress this past them. It is very important for the safety of every child in the class.
R.e. the shouting
Whilst recording anyone without their permission is illegal (I think?!) I understand why you did it. Some of what you say about the shouting may be contextual though, and it's hard to gauge from your posts. I am a teacher and ideally would never shout, but I have to at times. Context and also what was said is therefore massively important here.

Either way, I hope your child is o.k. and am so sorry this has happened.

Move your son.
Your responsibility is first and foremost towards him. Yes it’s great you want to also protect the other children, but he has already spent 18 months with a teacher that he is frightened of and one that hit him! He needs to come first at this point.

Re the school, there is no way they dint know.
The teachers next door will hear her shout and scream. There is no way there aren’t any other parents who have complained.
But the head is useless or supporting that behaviour agd there is little you can do there.

By experience, the only thing that move things is when parents vote with their feet and move their child. Then governors tend to get involved, questions are asked and things change. But you can’t make it your responsibility to happen. 18 months is already too long imo. I’d have moved him at the end if last year (anf have done that with my own dcs)

Thanks again for your responses. For those going through similar I will share what I have done. I contacted the NSPCC and although it was an hour and a half wait they were very helpful and are making a referral to lado themselves. The school never made a referral to LADO because they said they had done an internal investigation but when a child talks of being hit or hurt the school MUST refer to the LADO. As to the recording I can admit that is wrong and it is not usable either. Due to other children and teachers being on the recording I will delete it and not use as frustrating as that is I can understand how wrong it was. We have been referred to childline for emotional support for our son and he is on a waiting list for a new school. In the meantime he will not be going to school on the three days that the teacher in question is there, and instead will be homeschooled which he is very happy about! Thanks again all and feel free to message me if you need any support if you're going through similar.

It hasn't been 18 months FYI it has only been 4 months and in that time we have been going through the school and following the official complaints procedure

I also understand some teachers needing to shout absolutely, if a child is in danger or about to endanger someone else.
I did write to the governors also, thank you for the suggestion. The chair of governors was not concerned.

You have every right to move schools and I would suggest that you do so.

The relationship has clearly broken down.

I worked with a teacher like this when I was training. She physically abused children in front of me several times and was bullying two particular children to a really frightening extent. I reported it repeatedly and absolutely nothing was done (I nearly lost my place over it). Two years later she was a deputy head in a different school. It's rare, but it happens! Keep calm and don't give up. Keep pushing through the appropriate channels and make sure everything is always in writing.

Sorry @MotheringKings i understood September last year as September 22 rather September 23 🫣🫣

I feel for you and your ds. I hope that taking him out for those 3 days will be enough until things are sorted or he gets a place to another school.