Bianca Austin, wife of former Premier League star Charlie Austin has sparked an intense debate on social media after praising her daughter for allegedly "punching bully in the face".
According to the 35-year-old, her 16-year-old daughter had been teased by one particular girl for weeks, and because the school hadn't done anything, she had taken action.
Bianca, whose husband now plays League Two club Swindon Town, tweeted: "After weeks of being bullied by the same girl, numerous phone calls to the school and nothing changing, today when being called names my daughter finally punched the bully in the face. Proud mum."
The Tweet, which was posted on March 13, has since gone viral and has been seen by over 2million people.
The mum-of-three sparked intense debate amongst fellow social media users, with many also backing her daughter for standing up for herself.
One person commented: "We all have out breaking points and can only be pushed so far. Does she feel better now she's stood up for herself?"
Bianca replied saying: "No, but she's hoping the girl will leave her alone now."
Another said: "Good for her... Clearly the school wasn't doing anything about it for it still to be happening!"
A third added: "World needs more of this, a parent celebrating the fact their child is brave!! Well done to your daughter."
However, not everyone agreed that the mum should be encouraging her child's actions.
One person said: "Your daughter should not be hitting anyone, ever. I get that bullying is awful and harmful but when I said your daughter's actions would make things worse, you can now see where I was going. Bullying someone 'back' by hitting is also bullying."
Bianca replied back, saying: "I’d be interested to hear how you’d suggest a resolution to the bullying, Michelle. School couldn't stop it, it was wrecking her mental health and affecting her GCSE studies, what is the right course of action here?! Also she didn’t 'bully' back.
"Bullying is repeated behaviour intended to hurt someone emotionally and physically. She has no intent of malice, all she wants is to be left alone to quietly enjoy school!"
According to Bianca, who is currently training to be a nurse, her daughter was "excluded" from school for two days after the alleged incident, with the teenager's tormentor still allowed to go to class.
In a second tweet on March 14, she said: "Two days in-school exclusion for my daughter, whilst the other child has gone to class because she was 'only' verbally abusive. No wonder bullying is never stopped in school."
If you are being bullied, or know someone who is at risk due to bullying, you can call The National Bullying Helpline at 0300 323 0169 or 0845 22 55 787.
