Chelsea Cullum,15, was bullied in primary and secondary school by the same girls. Two years ago she attempted suicide.
Most of the bullying I experienced was verbal. I used to be thin and got bullied about that, then I comfort ate and they called me a "fat cow". I went from a size 10 to a 14 in one year.
"When I was 10, my best friend's dad died and she started picking on me. The teachers kept saying, "You've got to be understanding." But I didn't understand why she hated me. They seemed more concerned about her than me - they just made me go home for lunch and breaks.
"One of my bullies was taken off the school bus after my mum complained. But then she got her other friends to join in. In the end my whole year hated me.
"Once, we were all at the local park and they threw rocks at me until I left. I had cuts to my head. There was one girl who was also getting bullied and I'd always stick up for her. In the end she bullied me, too.
"I skipped classes and hid in the toilets. I used to self-harm, cutting my arms. When I was 12, I tried slitting my wrists at school with scissors.
"It was one of the bullies who found me. I hadn't managed to cut into my wrists and the teachers sent me home, saying I was attention-seeking. I did that twice, neither time ending up in hospital. The second time my friends found me.
"When the bullying got really bad I wanted to end it and thought this was the only way. I went into the toilets and put 10 paracetamol in my mouth. My friend followed me and hit me on the back of my head so I'd spit them out. The teachers got really cross.
"It caused lots of arguments in my family, because I hadn't told them how bad it had got. My mum decided that was enough. I didn't go back to school after that.
Samantha Wilkinson,13, has Meares-Irlen, a visual condition where objects appear distorted and text seems to move on the page, causing headaches and discomfort. It's thought this condition is prevalent in those with dyslexia. She has to wear glasses with dark pink lenses.
"When I was 10, a girl started teasing me about my glasses. I got really worried and upset. I told my mum, who complained to the school. It would get better for a week, then start again.
"When I went to secondary school, she was there and some other girls who used to be my friends joined in. It made me cry. The rest of the class just ignored it. They didn't stick up for me.
"They probably thought they'd get picked on, too. I used to be a lot more scared of teachers than I am now. In the past I wouldn't tell them, but now I'd always tell them about bullying.
"During the first week of secondary school, whenever the main bully saw me she'd walk quickly towards me, hit me in the stomach and carry on walking. It happened between two of the classroom blocks.
"The teachers investigated it, but because a girl who witnessed it says she saw nothing, they say there's nothing they can do. So my mum took me out of school and is trying to get me taught at home. I have anxiety problems and the doctor has signed me off.
"I want to get back into school. The bully should have to leave, not me. I want her to realise that what she's done has affected me badly."
