A MOTHER is refusing to send her son back to school after he was burnt in a classroom incident.

Billy Joseph Kelly, 11, had a cup of hot water thrown over him by a fellow pupil at Beaumont Hill Academy, in Darlington, which caters for children with special needs.

He suffered injuries to his chest and arm which required hospital treatment.

His mother Elizabeth Kelly, of Fenby Avenue, Darlington, said she wanted police to press charges over the incident.

But The Northern Echo understands that while the other pupil involved has been interviewed under caution by police, no further criminal action is being taken.

Ms Kelly claims pupils were allowed access to a kettle and the children involved in the incident were not being properly supervised at the time.

She said: “One of the kids got a red hot cup of water out of the kettle and chucked it at him.

“When I got there [the hospital] and saw him scalded I was devastated. He was crying his eyes out and in shock.

“I am not letting him go back to the school, I am not having my kids in danger.”

Ms Kelly said Billy, who suffers from ADHD, had only been at the school for a week. She has now been invited to a meeting at the school in which the incident is expected to be discussed further.

A spokesman for the Academy said: “Staff reacted quickly and administered appropriate first aid.

“We are unable to comment further because of an ongoing investigation.”

A spokesman for Durham Police said: “We were called to a school in Salters Lane South, Darlington at 11.43am on Tuesday March 21 following a report that a boy had been assaulted.

“An 11 year-old boy was interviewed under caution for assault. As a result he was referred to the Youth Offending Team who work with young people to prevent re-offending.

“This was deemed the most appropriate action in this case.”

Earlier this month Beaumont Hill Academy, which has 268 children on its books, was revealed to have been given an ‘inadequate’ rating by education watchdog Ofsted.

It was heavily criticised by inspectors for the effectiveness of its leadership and management, quality of teaching, pupil behaviour and Early Years provision.

Methods used to restrain pupils were said to carry a “high level of risk” with records of behavioural incidents left incomplete.

Some parents, however, backed the school in the wake of the report, praising the support their children had been given by staff.