Inquest told teen had been bullied
Pupil died after being found ill in school toilet
A TEENAGER who died after being found in a school toilet block was the victim of “numerous incidents” of bullying before his death, an inquest has heard.
Bradley John, pictured, who was 14, was found gravely ill in a toilet block at St John Lloyd Catholic Comprehensive School in Llanelli on September 12, 2018.
At an inquest hearing in Llanelli on Monday, father Byron John said his son had moved schools previously because of alleged bullying and that it had continued at his new school.
A TEENAGER who died after being found ill in a school toilet block was the victim of “numerous incidents” of bullying before his death, an inquest has heard.
Bradley John, who was 14 and from Ammanford, was found gravely ill at St John Lloyd Catholic Comprehensive School in Llanelli on September 12, 2018.
Bradley’s sister made the discovery after becoming concerned that her brother had skipped a science lesson. The Year 10 pupil was declared dead later the same day after being rushed to hospital.
At an inquest hearing in Llanelli on Monday, father Byron John said his son had moved schools previously because of alleged bullying and that it had continued at his new school. Mr John added that Bradley, who was diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), was “easy to provoke” and children “found it funny” to try to get a reaction from him.
“He was very hyperactive, sometimes had no concentration, and could be impatient followed by bouts of tiredness,” Mr John told the hearing in Llanelli.
“Bradley was very easy to wind up. He mainly reacted verbally which other children found funny and they could provoke him reasonably safely in the knowledge that they wouldn’t be at any risk.
“We were trying to get through to Bradley that if he could change his reaction and manage it differently the people perpetrating it would eventually get fed up and move on.”
Mr John said that his son had been “beaten up” on the school bus and recalled “numerous incidents” of bullying including Bradley allegedly having clothing stolen from his bag and being held down physically and having his shoes stolen from him by fellow pupils.
“It became apparent that a pupil on the bus was friends with older pupils who Bradley had trouble with at Amman Valley Comprehensive School (his previous school) and he was reporting back to them via his phone,” said Mr John.
“They were winding Bradley up on the bus and in numerous lessons at school clothing would go missing and he was beaten up on the bus on more than one occasion.”
Mr John said he was told “nothing could be done” about the issue which he said was raised with the coach company and the school.
He said he had made 104 calls to the school from his mobile phone in the year leading up to his son’s death.
Bradley, a keen horseman who competed in showjumping competitions and was described as having a “bright future” working with horses, had started looking at the possibility of going to an equestrian college.
The family had put plans in motion for Bradley to leave the school and attend a college course on a part-time basis which Mr John said his son was “planning ahead and excited about it,” adding that he had arranged to show some visiting family members his horses on the evening of the day he died.
He said Bradley told him he “never wanted to go back to St John Lloyd” but was “at his most confident and in the best place we had known him” in the weeks before his death.
“Bradley said: ‘They torment me because I ride horses but while they’re in their rooms on their Xbox I’m here [competing in showjumping]’.
“That sums him up. He loved competing and being around people – he was phenomenal at it,” Mr John said.
At yesterday’s hearing, Bradley’s sister, who cannot be named for legal reasons, said Bradley would go to the same “place of safety” to call his dad, Byron John, for advice when he was having problems.
Bradley’s sister said this was how she knew where her brother would be when it was announced over the school’s Tannoy system that Bradley was not in his lesson on the morning of September 12, 2018.
“Bradley’s place of safety was the toilet block, the one outside the technology room, where he was later found,” she said. “He confided in me and would say: ‘I have to go to the toilet cubicles when I’m stressed or angry where I can have five minutes to cool down and ring dad.’”
Giving evidence she said the bullying he experienced had intensified and she had become a target herself because of her association with him.
Representatives for the school outlined several occasions where they said sanctions, including detentions, had been implemented for incidents of bullying or other altercations involving Bradley and his sister. The hearing continues. For confidential support the Samaritans can be contacted for free around the clock 365 days a year on 116 123.