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‘Were there signs that the arm was fractured?’
‘It was a buckle fracture so there were no snapped bones, or swelling, and he could move his hand.
His mother did check all that, but she didn’t notice how much pain he was in.’
‘Did Ms Jenner return when you realised he needed treatment?’
‘Yes, of course, and she went with him to the hospital.’
‘So it’s possible she didn’t realise how badly he was hurt?’
‘No. She didn’t realise.’ Something in her expression wasn’t happy.
‘Do you think she should have realised?’
‘I do. I really do. And I suppose what’s always on my mind is: why did Ben feel he had to be so
stoical in front of her? He was only seven years old. And why didn’t his mother get him properly
checked up right away? Why didn’t she see what I saw?’
‘We had a similar incident in my old school,’ said the Head. ‘It’s not uncommon for minor fractures
to go unnoticed.’
‘I do know that,’ said Miss May, ‘it’s just that she always looked so depressed at the time, as if she
couldn’t cope. This was after the separation. I wondered if it was all getting a bit much for her. Ben
always seemed so worried about upsetting her.’
‘Were there any other signs?’ I asked.
Miss May took a deep breath. ‘No,’ she said. ‘Hand on heart, no there weren’t.’
‘Says here she forgot to collect him one day.’ The Head held up a piece of paper from Ben’s file.
‘Oh! Yes she did. I’d forgotten that,’ Miss May said. ‘Yes, that’s true. It was the last day of the
spring term, last year, and the children were supposed to be collected at midday instead of at the
usual time, so it was understandable.’
‘Was she commonly forgetful?’
‘No, no, it happened just the once, but Ben was very upset. He was inconsolable, actually. It was
the last thing he needed at the time. He’d only just moved out of their family home into the new house
with just his mum. He was feeling very insecure about the new arrangements, and it was a time when
it was important for him to feel wanted, to know that he was their priority.’
‘So, just to confirm, it wasn’t typical of Ben’s mother to forget him?’
‘No. It wasn’t typical, but when it happened I suppose I did think it might be a symptom of how
difficult things might be at home.’
‘So this was last year, and have things improved since then?’ I asked. ‘Any more incidents?’
‘No. Nothing else. He’s been better generally this year. I think he’s settled in the new house with
his mum now and things are hopefully a teensy bit calmer.’ Her inflection at the end of this sentence
made it sound like a question.
I looked at the Head. ‘What’s your view?’
‘Well I defer to Miss May on this, because, as I said, I don’t know Ben very well yet, and I haven’t
met his mother at all so I can’t comment on her. From what I’m hearing I suspect it’s been a hard time
for Ben and his mum, but also fantastic continuity for him that he’s had Miss May for two years
running.’
She smiled at him.
‘Well, thank you both,’ I said, ‘and if you think of anything else we should know then please get in
contact.’ I got up, grateful to be out of the chair.
‘We shall,’ the Head said. He looked even more weary as he stood and, in spite of his attitude
earlier, I felt sorry for both of them, having to go back out of this room and deal with the confusion
and fear of a school full of traumatised children. He smoothed his tie against his shirt and treated me