Pupils as young as 7 carry knives

CHILDREN as young as seven are being caught with weapons in classrooms but are too young to be prosecuted.

Data from one of Britain’s largest police forces reveals primary school pupils are taking knives into class.

Campaigners say the age of those caught with blades is increasingly falling because children fear violence from other pupils at school or during their commute. Yet the authorities have few powers to act because anyone under ten cannot be charged with a crime.

Figures from Kent Police, obtained under the Freedom of Information Act by the Press Association, show that between April 017 and December 019, 109 children were investigated for possessing, or threatening with, an offensive weapon or blade.

Two of those children, aged seven and nine, were prevented from being prosecuted because of their age. One tenyear-old was also let off for the same reason, suggesting they were suspected of committing an offence while below the age of criminal responsibility. The data showed the most common age for suspects was 14, with such children accounting for 3 incidents.

Five adults, aged 45, 35, 31, 19 and 18, were investigated for having knives at school, suggesting parents and siblings may also be taking violence into playgrounds.