Heartbreaking emails mum sent Santa Sabina College before daughter Charlotte O’Brien took her own life after being bullied

The mother of a 12-year-old girl who committed suicide has shared emails she says show her “begging” the school to take action against severe bullying against her daughter.

Charlotte O’Brien, a first-year student at Santa Sabina College in Strathfield, western Sydney, committed suicide earlier this month.

Daily Mail Australia reported on Wednesday that Charlotte was aware of her biological father’s violent criminal past.

She told her fellow students about what he had done, which led to ongoing bullying, according to mother Kelly O’Brien.

Messages seen by Daily Mail Australia show the family and school in discussions about Charlotte’s claims that she was bullied because of her disclosures.

In an August 2022 correspondence, Ms O’Brien wrote to Santa Sabina that she was “so concerned that Charlotte is being bullied because of the information coming to light.”

Mrs O’Brien wrote that she ‘would hate to have to take Charlotte out of her school and send her back to a new school’, but that ‘bullying simply has too serious an impact on mental health’.

The school responded: ‘At Santa we take bullying very seriously. Rest assured that we will do everything we can to support you and Charlotte.’

It was also said that therapy was being arranged for Charlotte.

Mrs O’Brien also wrote to Charlotte’s teacher, saying she was ‘overwhelmed by the support’ they had given the girl.

“We will continue to monitor her and support Charlotte in every way we can,” the teacher replied.

In November 2022, Mrs O’Brien wrote to the school to express her new concerns about Charlotte.

“She (Charlotte) has now emailed me with multiple crying faces saying she is having a hard time with the girls,” Ms O’Brien wrote.

As late as August 2024, Charlotte’s mother informed Santa Sabina that Charlotte was too upset to go to school.

‘Unfortunately Charlotte is not here today. She has been coming home crying the last few weeks because of friendship problems.

‘Charlotte is very upset this morning, so she will stay to recover.’

On September 10, Charlotte’s mother announced the tragic news that her daughter had committed suicide.

“My beautiful girl committed suicide due to ongoing friendship issues she was having,” she wrote.

“I was afraid to call it bullying, but it was.”

“I begged the school to intervene… I wish I had been stronger and demanded that it be fixed!” she wrote.

On Monday, Charlotte’s family expressed their dismay in a statement to 2GB breakfast presenter Ben Fordham, demanding that the bullying they say drove their daughter to despair for two years not be ‘swept under the carpet’.

The school responded Monday, saying the family’s allegations were “new and inconsistent with their records.”

“She wrote a suicide note specifically mentioning the bullying she had experienced at school,” Charlotte’s mother said.

She said life was too hard for her to go on.

‘When the most recent bullying case came up, the school simply said it was being investigated and the girls denied it. That was it. Case closed. Move on.

‘Well, my beautiful daughter’s life will not go on and I will never be able to say goodbye to her.

“These issues cannot be swept under the rug. I will not allow the memory of my daughter to be swept under the rug either.

How many more children have to die before they get it? How many parents have to suffer the pain of never being able to pick up their child from school before they get it?

“We are broken forever.”

According to experts, suicide is a complex phenomenon and can rarely be attributed to a single factor.

The greatest risk factors for suicide among young people are said to be mental illness or physical disability. However, bullying, family problems and bereavement are also considered risk factors.

Santa Sabina College has been contacted for comment.

For confidential crisis support, please contact Lifeline on 13 11 14