School put into 'lockdown' over gunman fears as 'sobbing' pupils scale the fences and parents rush to get their children
A UK school has reportedly been placed in to lockdown over fears that a gunman was seen.
Students were said to be scaling the fence of their secondary school in a desperate bid to get away after learning that a man had apparently been seen with a gun.
Armed officers from West Sussex Police attended the school, in Bognor Regis, West Sussex, after the report was made to them. The Regis School was placed in lockdown while officers looked for the alleged gunman. Nobody has been detained at the time of writing, and the police are continuing their hunt with the aid of police dogs.
Parents were called and asked to collect their children if possible while the situation unfolded, with many rushing to the scene to do so.
The Regis School is a a secondary academy for 11 to 18 year olds with almost 1,600 pupils. It is next door to the Arena Sports Centre. The Daily Mail reports that pupils from other nearby schools have also been affected by the icident and have been stuck inside the sports centre while officers try to locate the gunman.
A mother with two children at the school told the publication: “The whole school has just been placed in full lockdown. I have gone down to collect my children and they are just hysterical. I have never witnessed anything like that.
“There are children in the leisure centre next door who were stuck in there for two or three hours - there are children climbing over fences to get out.
She went on to allege that students had been told they couldn’t use their phones as the chaos unfolded. “Kids are trying to call their parents and then being told off for using their phones. It has just been so poorly managed. There are dogs and probably five police cars in the car park.
It is just carnage. Parents are now turning up to pick up their children. My daughter was just hysterical and sobbing.”
Sean Whitworth, grandfather to children in the school, said: “The police won’t say anything to anybody. My daughter has gone down to get the kids out the school.”
A Sussex Police spokesman said: “At around 11.10am today (October 22), police received a report of a man seen with a suspected firearm in Firth Road, Bognor. Due to the close proximity of nearby schools, police advised them to implement temporary lockdown procedures while searches of the area were carried out.
“All schools have since reopened. Wider search activity, including armed officers, is ongoing, and a visible police presence continues in the area.
“Anyone with information or footage that may assist the investigation is asked to contact police online or by calling 101, quoting reference 450 of 22/10. In an emergency, always dial 999.”