A mum claims that her daughter was treated unfairly after planning to set off the fire alarm at school.
She also said the teenager was excluded from classes after earlier getting into bother for having "the wrong trousers and the wrong size of bag."
The mother's complaints were outlined to city magistrates after she pleaded guilty to failing to ensure her 13-year-old daughter's regular attendance at school.
Mrs Anna Evans, for the county council, told the court: "She felt her daughter was being bullied by school staff."
The girl attended only 75 out of 140 sessions between March 25 and August 23.
When problems began to build, education staff made arrangements to visit the mother at her home.
On the first occasion, she was just leaving and said she was taking her toddler to nursery.
On two other occasions, staff knocked on the front door with no response.
And once when an officer arrived, she heard voices near the front window and the words: "Hide, it's the social worker."
Mrs Evans told the three magistrates that the girl is "continuing to have unauthorised absences."
The mother was fined £120 with £100 costs and a government surcharge of £30.
Presiding JP Cheryl Abraham told her: "Clearly education is extremely important. It is important a child has adequate education.
"The school made umpteen and substantial efforts to help you and your daughter.
"You could have made more effort to work with the school to help you, too."
The mother said that she had decided to educate the child at home at one stage.
But this did not go ahead.
She added: "I got a home visit, and she started looking through cupboards. That's nothing to do with her absence."
