A schoolboy placed in isolation for his “extreme haircut” has decided to chop off his locks for charity after claiming he was repeatedly bullied for it.
Prior to being 'targeted' and having his hair pulled by students, Aimee Mason, mum of Jaylen, 11, claimed her son was picked out by teachers due to their “discriminatory” hair policy, while queuing to enter Robert Clack school in Dagenham, Essex on his first day of Year 7.
She claimed that Jaylen was immediately separated from the rest of the pupils for having less than a number two haircut on the sides of his head, and that he came home feeling upset about the ordeal last year.
Left fuming by the school's actions, Aimee said she requested a meeting with the head, claiming that the haircut didn't breach the policy.
Robert Clack apologised for placing the boy in its Learning Support Centre on his first day and “for any distress caused”.
It also acknowledged the "issue of the policy on the website was a technical omission”.
But since then, Aimee said her son had been tormented by other students who drag on his hair and throw insults, which she claimed was a result of having attention drawn to him by being placed in isolation.
Deciding to take matters into his own hands, the 11-year-old - who now struggles with his mental health - feels he's been left with no choice but to cut his hair for charity.
Writing on his GoFundMe page, which has raised £580 out of its £1000 goal, Jaylen said he wants the money to go towards Future Youth Zone, a charity that has helped him through his struggles.
Speaking to the Mirror about his experience, Jaylen said: “It made me feel awkward [when people were saying things] at the start but then I started getting angry and sad.
"I like how long and curly my hair is. I'll be a little bit sad to cut it.
"I like my hair but it's really tough to go through that doing it and have people say things about it, and say things like 'Tarzan' and 'Jumanji' and touching it.
"They might keep saying stuff but pulling my hair will stop."
The schoolboy added he was looking for a barber to aid him in cutting his hair so that it could be used to make a wig for hair loss patients.
On Saturday Jaylen will cut his hair and donate it to someone “who needs it” while raising money for charity, to put a stop to the bullying he experiences.
Although his mother Aimee said she wished he didn’t have to resort to cutting his hair, she remained proud that he has found a positive outlet for the situation.
Aimee said: “He has most definitely struggled a lot.
“A lot of the time they were calling him a girl, a lot to do with his hair. They called him Medusa at one point which really upset him.
“When he had single plaits they were calling him Medusa.
“Having the attention drawn to his hair, kids were handed a target on a silver platter.
“The [school] just drew unnecessary attention [to him].
“He’s chosen the way he wants to move forward and I’m proud of him for finding a way through that’s not negative and it could have been.
“He could have chosen to go down many other paths.”
Robert Clack school claimed it wasn't aware of bullying allegations and said they had reviewed records of conversations with Jaylen's mum.
A Robert Clack statement read: “The Head of Year 7 regularly speaks with the pupil in question and his mother and none of the conversations prior to this date related to allegations of bullying.
“Indeed, the allegations only came to light when the School received an email from a journalist writing for The Mirror.
“Subsequently, the pupil made an allegation against another child, which was investigated and dealt with in line with school policy.
“On Wednesday 1 March, the Head of Year 7, the Assistant Headteacher (Pastoral) and the SENDCo met with Miss Mason.
“The Head of Year 7 also spoke with Miss Mason on the telephone for over an hour on Friday 3 March.
“During these conversations, it was explained to Miss Mason that if allegations were not reported to the School, they could not be investigated.
“Since then, further allegations, which are unrelated to the pupil's hair, have been made and are currently under investigation.
“Moving forward, the School hopes that, if any further concerns arise, Miss Mason and the pupil in question will report them directly to the School and in a timely fashion so that they can be investigated.”
Aimee claimed she told staff about the bullying back in 2022, but that the school likely didn’t record the allegations because Jaylen was too afraid to give names.
She added that teachers had witnessed Jaylen being bullied and knew who the culprits were and could therefore take action.
Aimee said: “Jaylen was telling me and my mum that literally there’s been teachers physically standing there while students are teasing him and pulling his hair and teachers are standing there.
“It’s been really harming my mental health, trying to deal with this situation and being gaslit when I know what I know.
“Jaylen doesn’t feel safe. The school keeps saying he has to come and tell us names but they’re not thinking of how dangerous that is in this day and age.
“There’s a massive thing around grassing and it puts children in danger. The only way they’re willing to do anything is if Jaylen gives names.
“Instead of writing it down and making a note of it and saying Jaylen hasn’t specified who, but XYZ has happened. Because Jaylen hasn’t given names, it hasn’t been written down.”
Aimee said she doesn’t trust the school and that Jaylen’s mental health has deeply suffered from the ongoing bullying.
She said: “I don’t trust the school at this point. It’s stressful that I believed they were trying. At this point I don’t feel like it’s safe, that’s why I pulled him out of the school.
“The last couple of months, he's been showing clear signs of depression.
“He's been quite low. Not really wanting to participate. He's been wanting to go home every day.”
Aimee said more needs to be done for children before it’s "too late".
She said: “Everybody knows now more than ever how volatile young people are and how vulnerable they are.
“People need to start taking children's mental health seriously and understand how children are affected by things.
“They need to pay attention because you don’t know anybody’s limits. It’s no good waiting till the child has done something to then go ‘we didn’t know’, it’s not good enough.”
A spokesperson for Future Youth Zone said: “Jaylen has been a valued member of Future Youth Zone since we opened in 2019.
“We are really proud that Jaylen has chosen to raise money to support our charity and his community.
“He is an inspiration to us and his peers and we wish him the best of luck with the big chop and his fundraising.”
For more information about the GoFundMe click here.
