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SCHOOLS SAY NO TO KNIFE DETECTORS
Headteachers reject claim that students carry weapons
HEADTEACHERS across the borough have blocked a police proposal to put knife detection arches at their school gates, the New Journal has learned.
Under pressure from City Hall and Scotland Yard to tackle youth crime, Camden police planned to use metal detecting “search arches” on at least two secondary schools – but have backtracked after heads said no.
Acland Burghley head Michael Shew said yesterday (Wednesday): “I think I speak for every school in the Safer Schools Partnership when I say that we will not be installing search arches on our gates. For us there’s very little evidence that our students are actually bringing knives into school. Rather than search arches, we have human beings on the gates.”
Last week’s massive London-wide focus on youth knife crime forced Camden police to rapidly adopt policies of stopping and searching young people and increasing the use of search arches – known as Operation Blunt2.
On Monday, an email from the head of schools policing, Inspector Paul Peplow, was circulated to community representatives explaining the operation: “In Camden, youth-related violence and knife crime is an area of concern for the partnership, particularly in light of some recent incidents including in the Gospel Oak area. This Met-wide policy will begin on Monday May 19 . In addition, two secondary schools have agreed to the use of search arches to discourage and prevent the carrying of weapons and violence outside schools.”
But by Tuesday his boss, Acting Superintendent Paul Morris, told the New Journal the police were “highly sensitive to the possible impact” of such measures, and did not have “immediate plans” to use the arches.
The New Journal understands that after the announcement of Operation Blunt2, police met several headteachers of secondary schools, who expressed their concerns about the message knife arches would send about their school and their pupils.
On Tuesday night, Supt Morris explained the new tactics to the Camden Community Police Consultative Group, the borough’s main crime forum.
Stressing the need to engage with residents and the fact that he had already met youth groups, he said the policy was aimed squarely at “stopping the death of any young people on the streets of London”, but admitted: “We were all upset with the apparent haste that this has come with.”
Privately, several senior officers are frustrated that the Met-wide policy has been imposed on Camden at such short notice and with such political fanfare. Camden has among the lowest levels of knife-related crime in London.
And increasing the use of powers for police to stop and search young people without giving “reasonable grounds” as the law normally requires flies in the face of historic reluctance by Camden police to use the power.
The operation has had a mixed reaction. Youth Council minister Nicholas Seaford, 16, said: “I only think it should be introduced if the police feel it is absolutely necessary and will help. But young people must not feel they’re being victimised.” |
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