Wellwishers raise £75,000 for bullied schoolboy who had his finger amputated
Bullied schoolboy loses a FINGER after getting it caught in fence while fleeing his racist attackers: Well-wishers raise £75,000 for the 11-year-old and his family
Raheem Bailey, 11, ran away from bullies and got his finger caught in a fenceHe faced ‘racial and physical abuse’ at the large school in Gwent, South WalesA school bus took them to a minor injuries unit despite the severe injury Five hour wait for an ambulance to go have surgery in Swansea, 50 miles away The boy spent six hours in surgery and his mother is fundraising for a prosthetic Abertillery Learning Community have not checked on Raheem but told police
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Strangers have raised over £75,000 for a boy who had his finger amputated after escaping bullies.
Raheem Bailey, 11, needed surgery after he got his finger caught in a fence while running away from bullies.
His mother Shantal Bailey says her son experienced ‘racial and physical abuse’ at his secondary school since starting in September last year.
She is fundraising to buy Raheem a prosthetic finger to help him ‘on the road to recovery’.
Shantal Bailey, Raheem’s mother has complained to the school on their lack of action over his bullying a day before the attack
Ms Bailey says her son complained about people being ‘mean’ at Abertillery Learning Community in Gwent, South Wales, which has 1,600-pupils.
On Tuesday morning she got a call from her son ‘screaming in pain.’
The mother of four said she complained to the school a day before the incident.
Raheem said he was threatened with detention, even though he was the ‘one getting picked on.’
She said she was told the bullying would be managed by the following morning.
Ms Bailey said: ‘He had mentioned a few incidents of people being ‘mean to him’ recently.
After waiting hours for medical help it became apparent that Raheem would lose his finger
The schoolboy was pushed to the ground and then repeatedly kicked by a group of children
‘I did not realise the extent of what he was going through until an incident this week.
‘On Tuesday morning break time, Raheem was attacked and beaten by a group of children whilst in school.
‘He was pushed to the ground and then repeatedly kicked.
‘He made a desperate attempt to leave the school grounds in order to escape the situation but caught his finger.
‘I received a phone call from Raheem and then the school informing me of the incident.
Ms Bailey, a mother of four, had herself, Raheem and his baby brother driven to the hospital in the school bus after the school told her not to drive him to A&E
His mother is now raising money to get Raheem a prosthetic finger to help him ‘on the road to recovery’
‘The school told me that the ambulance wouldn’t arrive for two hours, but advised me not to drive Raheem to A&E myself.
‘Raheem, his baby brother and I were taken to a minor injuries unit by the school bus, despite them knowing that his injury was severe.
‘We spent the next five hours waiting for an ambulance to transfer us to the location where he would undergo surgery, in Swansea, 50 miles away from his home and school.
‘As time rolled on, it became more apparent that the possibility my son was going to lose his finger was a real one. The doctors then confirmed this was likely. I had to explain this to him while he sat there in agony.’
Ms Bailey is now assisting her son’s recovery after he spent six hours in surgery where doctor’s battled to save his finger.
She added: ‘From the day of the incident until now Abertillery learning community have not reached out to me to check on his wellbeing.
‘My son has got to live with this for the rest of his life.’
A spokesperson for Abertillery Learning Community said the school are working with police.
They said: ‘We are currently working closely with Gwent Police and the local authority to establish the full details of the incident.
The family spent five hours waiting for an ambulance to transfer them to Swansea – 50 miles away – where he would undergo surgery
The 11-year-old had complained about the ‘racial and physical abuse’ at his new school which houses 1,600 pupils
The school, the local authority, and the Gwent Police are all conducting an investigation into Raheem Bailey’s life-changing incident
‘The well-being and safety of our pupils and staff remains of paramount importance. We will not be commenting further at this time.’
A Gwent Police spokesman said: ‘We received a report of an incident at a school in Abertillery around 1pm on Wednesday, where an 11-year-old boy was injured.
‘A multi-agency meeting has taken place and we’re working with the school as part of our ongoing enquires.’
A Welsh government spokesperson said: ‘We condemn bullying and racial harassment in any form and expect allegations and incidents of bullying and racism to be fully investigated by schools with appropriate action taken to address the matter and prevent further instances from happening.
‘We understand that this incident is being investigated by the school and the local authority, and that Gwent Police are involved and carrying out an investigation.
‘As such, it would be inappropriate to comment further at this stage.’
