A Saint John mother is pulling her 11-year-old daughter out of Prince Charles School after what she considers to be excessive bullying at the school.

Lori Moore said her daughter will not return to the kindergarten to Grade 8 school for the remainder of the semester, and later in the month the family will move to another part of the city so the girl can attend a different school.

'When she comes home she cries all the time. She has nightmares, she isn't happy. She wants to spend the night in my room sleeping. It changed her.'— Lori Moore, mother

The breaking point came this week when Moore's daughter, Rebecca Miller, had her lunch stolen at school.

Moore said she was outraged to hear it wound up in a toilet and someone had defecated on the food.

"That was the point I said, 'Enough is enough,'" Moore said. "That to me is a vile, disgusting act and there's no excuse for that."

Moore said a group of students at the school bullied her daughter this year, through aggressive behaviour and even threats.

Moore said this sort of behaviour has been terrible for her daughter's self-esteem.

"When she comes home she cries all the time. She has nightmares, she isn't happy. She wants to spend the night in my room sleeping. It changed her," Moore said.

"There was an incident where four kids ganged up and verbally assaulted her, they threatened to kill her. These are things I take seriously."

Moore said the bullies involved should have been suspended for their actions. It's her understanding the students have only had special privileges revoked, including access to dances and after-school activities.

Suspensions not automatic for bullying

Susan Tipper, the superintendent of School District 8, would not speak to this specific case, but said all schools in the district follow a zero tolerance policy for bullying.

"Zero tolerance means it's unacceptable behaviour. It doesn't mean it warrants a suspension but it certainly warrants an intervention to correct or improve the behaviour," Tipper said.

Interventions can include counselling, peer mentor programs, and, in some cases, suspensions.

Tipper said since there are normally two sides to every story, schools need time to investigate cases of bullying and determine an appropriate course of action.