Weekly News 7

"Gifted" teenager found hanged after she was suspended from prestigious grammar school"

Francesca Candita-Simpkins



 This article is from the Daily Mirror, written by Hannah Stubbs.

This is a story about a thirteen year old girl, who committed suicide after being suspended from her prestigious grammar school. By showing a picture of Francesca as a young child the writer is trying to provoke empathy towards the girl, as the photo shows her as a child which is a representation of dependency and vulnerability.

Francesca was shortly suspended for stealing a craft knife from her school, Newstead Wood in Orpington. She stole the knife to become 'Blood Sisters' with one of her friends. Her school then did not follow the correct procedure in excluding Francesca. It was known to the school that Francesca has been having suicidal thoughts since she was 6 years old, and had already attempted an overdose 6 months earlier.

"The teacher suggested to Mr Simpkins that if Francesca was to be suspended it would not be until the end of the week of exams she was about to complete.

But the headteacher, who did not meet with Francesca or her parents, decided that she should immediately be excluded and did not follow the behaviour and exclusions policies, the inquest heard"

I think the purpose of this story is to raise awareness about the lack of knowledge about mental health in teenagers, whilst also claiming that the school is largely responsible for her death. Mental health in the UK, and across is rarely recognised as the huge problem it is. This is highlighted when Francesca's father, Mr Simpkins, is quoted saying "There was no advice given on how to look after her or how to manage her. At the time I assumed that none was required."

I agree to some extent that the school was irresponsible in letting Francesca be suspended when they knew she was having troubles with her mental health and with her parents. However I also think that her parents were to blame as it seems that Francesca was not given the support she needed and judging by the comments given by her father, her parents seemed reluctant to show her any special attention.