Bullied boy, 12, hangs himself

A 12-year-old boy has killed himself after falling victim to bullies.

Nathan Jones, described as bright and big-hearted by friends, hanged himself at home in Romford after school. His family found his body.

As floral tributes piled up at the gates of King's Wood School in Harold Hill, near Romford, today, friends and relative demanded action against the bullies.

One distraught mother, who did not want to be named, said Nathan's fellow classmates had been aware of the suffering inflicted on him.

"My daughter called me to say one of her classmates had hanged himself because he was being bullied," she said.

"I just broke down in tears. You send your kids to school and expect them to be looked after. This poor boy should never be forgotten. The teachers need to be made accountable for what has happened. We have to put a stop to bullying."

Nathan was in his second year at the school. A passing police patrol was on the scene of the tragedy in minutes and officers tried to resuscitate him before paramedics arrived. Efforts to save him continued for an hour but Nathan was confirmed dead on arrival at Oldchurch Hospital.

Counselling is being offered to pupils and staff at King's Wood. A Havering council spokesman said: "Nathan was a bright pupil who was active in raising funds for the recent tsunami appeal. He was also active in school drama and music events. He was a school council representative. We cannot speculate about the reason for his death."

Councillor Geoff Starns, cabinet member for children's services at the council, said: "The full facts are still being ascertained and the police have not yet concluded their enquiries. Our thoughts are with the family and those who were close to Nathan." An inquest has been opened and adjourned in Romford and a post mortem has confirmed Nathan died from hanging.

His death last Thursday is not being treated as suspicious by police. Nathan's family were too upset to talk about the tragedy last night.

King's Wood School, a mixedsex secondary with 860 pupils aged 11 to 16, was described as "failing" and recommended for "special measures" after an Ofsted inspection last year.

With truancy rates among the worst 10 per cent in the country, it has returned GCSE results "well below" the national average. Many of the pupils come from disadvantaged backgrounds. More than a third qualify for free school meals, and one in five has special educational needs. There is also a high turnover of staff.

Ofsted inspectors also found that, despite good teacherpupil relations, quality of leadership and management at the school was "unsatisfactory".