Penistone Grammar School 'open' to getting a permanent knife arch installed on site
It's following a 'successful' trial there last week
A secondary school in South Yorkshire tell us they'd 'be open' to getting a permanent knife arch installed on their premises - after a 'successful' trial last week.
Penistone Grammar School - which has around 2,000 students - allowed pupils there to walk through the 'airport style' metal detectors recently - thanks to funding from South Yorkshire Police.
Staff there invited South Yorkshire Police down on site last week - with a knife arch - following the tragic death of Harvey Willgoose at All Saints Catholic High School in February.
Katie Crook from Penistone Grammar School is determined to make sure no dangerous weapons - like knives - get brought onto the school grounds.
The Associate Vice Principal is hopeful the initiative could be extended in future - if they can secure more funding from South Yorkshire Police & Barnsley Council:
"Students absolutely loved the day with the knife arch. It was really positive.
"It's something I think would be a strong, preventative measure.
"We will research this further, but it's imperative that we communicate any forthcoming plans effectively with parents and carers.
"Any new initiative would have to start properly from the new academic year - we'd never launch something midway through a school year - so hopefully we can do something more with this from September onwards.
"Recent events have really prompted us as a school to review all of our policies and procedures - to make sure we are a proactive school that takes a preventative approach to knife and dangerous weapon crime.
"It's not just the piece of equipment - the knife arch - that will of course be a deterrent and preventative measure - but actually it's that presence and culture of working closely with police teams that we're really keen to develop."
A teenage boy has since been charged with murdering 15-year-old Harvey Willgoose - & is next due to appear at Sheffield Crown Court in April.