The former acting principal at a school where a child alleges she was bullied told the High Court yesterday there was a huge awareness in the school of the phenomenon of bullying, and measures had been drawn up to deal with it.
Ms Mary Mullarkey, acting principal at Scoil Nano Nagle, Clondalkin, Dublin, from March 1996 until December 1997, was first witness for the school in an action against it brought by Nicola Mulvey, now aged 10, suing by her mother, Ms Margaret Mulvey, Ashwood Avenue, Clondalkin. Nicola was in junior infants in the year 1997-98.
The school denies the claim, and pleads that its servants or agents are not guilty of any negligence or breach of duty.
Ms Mullarkey said there was a rota for supervising the playground. She had supervised it on 18 occasions in the period while Nicola was there. She became aware of an incident in which Nicola's trousers bottom was pulled down by another child. Ms Mulvey made no complaint to her until the last day of the term, when she said she wanted to make a complaint about alleged bullying.
Earlier, the final witness for the child, Dr Colm Costigan, of Our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children, Crumlin, Dublin, said Nicola had been a patient of his for a number of years. A report by him, dated December 16th, 2003, concluded: "In my opinion Nicola did have a major fear of school with resultant anxiety, weight loss, change in behaviour and exacerbation of her asthma."
The case continues today.