Five-year-old girl allegedly stabbed at NSW primary school; mother says details were withheld

A five-year-old girl was allegedly stabbed in the head with a pencil by a classmate while at St Philomena's School in Moree, a regional town in northern New South Wales, on September 17, according to a Daily Mail report.

Paramedics treated the girl at the school, and her mother, Eliza, told the Daily Mail that her daughter was 'covered in blood' when she arrived after being alerted that an ambulance had to be called. "The school refused to tell me how she sustained her injury and has not provided me any further information about the incident," she said. She added that staff did not immediately explain what had happened after she arrived at the scene.

Officials at St Philomena's later described the incident in a newsletter published via the school’s internal app as a 'skin puncture', a characterization Eliza said downplays the seriousness of the event. Eliza criticized the response, saying there was a lack of urgency in providing support to her daughter after the incident. There has been no independent confirmation or public update from authorities about the incident in the notes available to the press, and no additional information has been provided publicly by the school.

The case has drawn attention to safety and communication at regional NSW schools, with families seeking clearer explanations about what occurred and how schools handle such incidents going forward. As of now, officials have not released further details beyond the descriptions reported by the outlet covering the event, and the situation remains under review by those involved. More information may come as investigations continue and school officials determine how to address safety measures in the future.