School locked down by armed police amid weapon fears
Firearms officers were in attendance as pupils were kept inside their classrooms.
A school was locked down on Monday morning amid fears a pupil had brought a weapon on to school property in their bag.
Police, including firearms officers, were called to Lewis School Pengam in Caerphilly, Wales, on May 12. All pupils were placed in a lockdown situation at around 9.30am while the incident was dealt with.
Parents were updated on the situation later in the day. In a statement from the school, seen by our sister title WalesOnline, head teacher Chris Parry said nobody was injured in the incident.
He added: 'We responded to an incident within the school utilising our school lockdown procedure.
' Police were in attendance and the incident was dealt with within the hour. School has returned to normal schedule.
'We appreciate this can be unsettling for pupils and parents and our pastoral team are checking in on their groups.'
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Gwent Police said a student was searched on school grounds before the lockdown was lifted, and no weapon was found.
A spokesperson for the force said: 'We received a call at around 9.40am on Monday, May 12 reporting a potential concern for safety on the premises of Lewis School Pengam after a comment was made about an alleged weapon in a pupil's bag.
'The school was put into lockdown and officers, including specifically-trained firearms officers, attended as a precaution. The pupil and bag were searched and no weapon was found.'
In March, the teaching union NASUWT Cymru repirted 6,446 reports of violent incidents in Welsh schools between 2023 and 2024, up from 4,714 the previous year.
The Welsh Government is due to deliberate on the outcomes of a round table discussion on violence and safety in schools, as part of a behaviour summit.
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