Teen arrested after school fire in west London

London Oratory School
Author: Louise EastonPublished 28th Dec 2023

A 16 year old boy's been arrested on suspicion of arson after a fire at a west London school.

A shopping centre and homes near the London Oratory School in Fulham were evacuated as a precaution. No injuries have been reported.

The prestigious Catholic school, which admits boys aged seven to 18 and girls aged 16 to 18, is a short distance from the Chelsea stadium, Stamford Bridge.

The school's alumni include actor Simon Callow, trade unionist Mick Whelan, as well as the children of the former prime minister Sir Tony Blair, Harriet Harman and former deputy prime minister, Sir Nick Clegg.

A Met spokesperson said:

"The cause of the fire is under investigation.

"At around 11:15am a 16-year-old boy was arrested on suspicion of arson and taken into custody.

"A nearby shopping centre and some residential addresses have been evacuated as a precaution.

A spokesperson for London Fire Brigade said:

"The brigade was called at 10.11am

"Fire crews from Fulham, Chelsea, Kensington, Wandsworth, Hammersmith, Clapham, Lambeth and Soho fire stations were in attendance.

"The cause of the fire is under joint investigation by the Brigade and the Met Police."

A spokesperson for the London Ambulance Service said:

"We sent a number of resources to the scene, including ambulance crews, an incident response officer, a medic in a fast response car and members of our hazardous area response team (HART).

"Our first medics arrived at the scene in less than three minutes.

"We did not treat any patients at the scene."

Chelsea and Fulham MP Greg Hands said he was "concerned" by the incident, and was in touch with the police.

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