Should metal detectors be installed in schools - fatal stabbing in Sheffield

It's horrifying that another child has died because of knife violence in schools. I don't think metal detectors are the answer. Support services are severely overstretched or have disappeared altogether due to budget cuts. In my local authority, the educational psychologist team disappeared over COVID and the PRU isn't accepting any more pupils. Sort that out and it will go a long way to reducing the number of disaffected, violent children in schools.

Yes, sick of seeing that phrase.

They have been putting metal detectors and police in US schools for years. It lowered the shootings, but did not stop the stabbings. Why? Because you can get knives made from plastic, obsidian, flint, ceramics, carbon fibre, etc…

So I put YABU because it will only stop stabbings in school for a few months, and none of the stabbings that usually happen on the way to/from school in the street.

And we have clear bags which get searched. Dog patrol teams are shared regionally and a really expensive resource.

This is so spot on.

But they can't or won't invest in this so they go to ridiculous proposals to cover this fact up.

Who would search underage girls when it sounds for their bra? work somewhere we have metal detectors and it goes off about half the time a woman goes through so we have to have a rub down/be wanded. Loads of innocuous things also set it off- metal on shoes/trousers/hair clips/piercings etc. It would take hours for hundreds of school kids to get into school.

Yup.

I have to say that I’m thinking if this was my child’s school, I’d be really looking for solutions. So, I voted YANBU with re to metal detectors in schools 🤷‍♀️

So all you saying no to the metal detectors what is the answer.

Also, of your child went to this particular school what would they have to do now to make you feel it was safe for your child.

If a kid wants to stab someone they will find a way. Whether that is doing it outside of school grounds, or throwing a weapon over the fence to pick up during school hours.

Metal detectors are not going to stop teenagers getting attacked.

It's likely that this child should have been expelled long ago. But the government don't like this, so here we are.

Remember, all behaviour is communication!

Very sad event. Lots of American schools have had metal detectors for years so it is doable, for all those with practical concerns

We need to exclude the kids who are that way inclined. The girl who stabbed a pupil and 2 teachers in Wales was found guilty of attempted murder today. A knife had been found on her in school previously. She should have been nowhere near a school after that.

When I was at college in the late 90's we had security guards and metal detectors... really surprised that more schools don't have this twenty years later!

There are other ways to get knives in. My secondary school site was and still is a huge sprawling thing with multiple buildings, boundaries and ways in/out, including a massive public wood along one side. Where would the metal detectors go and who would police them all day?

There’s not enough money for glue sticks let alone metal detectors!

At my old school they did get some of the handheld ones they use at airports that could be used if there was a suspicion- they were mostly used for vapes though.

We also had visits from police sniffer dogs!

So who’s going to supervise these gates? The detectors can’t tell the difference between a stapler and a knife. Bags will need to be checked constantly. Back on my day when children were poppets and teachers at all times respected etc there would’ve been plenty of us who would’ve tucked a spoon under a mysteriously torn lining to shave 15 minutes off the start of double maths or just for the japes.

Then what? Sniffer dogs, compulsory body armour for all staff and pupils? Teachers being allowed to carry weapons as protection?

No - you address the cause.

I don’t think metal detectors are going to help with a serious attack plan. If someone wants to get a weapon into the school, they will figure out a way to bypass the metal detector. Metal detectors are for low-level violence that might escalate if someone has contraband. For that, it seems better to me to work on the school ethos.

Yes of course, do you need to ask?

Not just at schools though, all public buildings, etc.
Should never have been allowed to go this far but it has, so we need to protect people as much as we can.

No, it's not the answer. More surveillance does not lead to happiness. Most people have metal on zips, shoes and bags anyway, so who is going to be conducting a personal search on all of these children every day? You can guarantee it will be girls who are on the receiving end of that system.

They will just move to plastic knives/weapons.

Statistically speaking it's not a huge problem in schools - though even one case is a tragedy obviously - so metal detectors would be overkill.