UK Violence: 6-Year-Old Found Carrying a Knife in School
Young child caught brandishing weapon as UK knife crime spirals out of control
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A six-year-old boy has been "removed from school" after he was caught carrying a knife, the headteacher has revealed.
The unnamed youngster showed the blade to a fellow pupil in the playground of Westborough Primary School in Westcliff-on-Sea, Essex, UK.
Parents have expressed concern over the September incident, accusing school officials of having the incident "swept under the carpet."
Headteacher Tonya Brook responded to accusations of a cover-up, saying it was an "isolated incident."
The child, who can't be named for legal reasons, was subsequently expelled from the school.
Parents have been left frustrated by the school's handling of the incident after claiming they feel the school covered it up.
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According to Metro, one mother, who wished to remain anonymous, said she was made aware by another concerned parent on the playground.
She said she feels everyone should have been made aware about the "absolutely shocking" incident in which a "six-year-old is bringing a knife to school."
"I was horrified," she said.
"My initial reaction was one of fear and anger for my child because you do worry about your children going there and you don’t expect a six-year-old to bring a knife to school."
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The parent went on to say: "I understand there is scaremongering but with an incident as serious as this, I do think all parents should have been made aware so that we could decide what measures to put in place for our children.
"It feels like it was swept under the carpet.
"I just hope the school would deal with something like this robustly to make sure it doesn’t happen again."
The school said the knife was not used to threaten anyone and that the incident was dealt with immediately.
Headteacher Tonya Brook said: "This was an isolated incident where a six-year-old brought a small paring knife into school in his book bag.
"He showed it to another child. It did not come out of the bag.
"A member of Senior Management was on the playground to deal with the issue immediately.
"The child was subsequently removed from the school.
"All relevant parties were informed."
