Teacher arrested after schoolboy, 14, suffers 'serious' head injury

A science teacher was being questioned by police today after a schoolboy was left with serious head injuries following an alleged attack.

Peter Harvey was arrested by Nottinghamshire Police yesterday after the incident at All Saints' Roman Catholic School in Mansfield.

Parents at the school gates this morning said the 14-year-old was allegedly hit with a weight.

The boy was taken to King's Mill Hospital in the town but his condition deteriorated during the afternoon and he was transferred to a specialist unit at the Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham.

Nottinghamshire County Council, the local education authority, said the boy's condition had "slightly improved" overnight.

His family are with him and have asked for privacy, Nottinghamshire Police said.

A spokeswoman for the force said: "A 49-year-old was arrested and remains in custody in connection with this incident.

"The police investigation is being led by Detective Superintendent Adrian Pearson, with specialist officers from the public protection unit.

"They are working with the headteacher and staff at All Saints' Roman Catholic School."

Today, parents told of their shock as they dropped their children off at the school, which was being guarded by police.

One father said: "It's a massive shock and very sad because if there is something wrong with the teacher it cannot be totally his fault."

Claire Tonks, 23, was dropping her nephew at the school today. She said:
"It's a good school and I can't believe it as it could have been my nephew."

A 48-year-old grandmother added: "The teacher has got to have been pushed to do it because he stands to lose his job."

The school is located in a rundown area of Mansfield and boarded-up houses line the street around it.

Senior teachers and police officers stood outside the gates ushering pupils in this morning.

Chris Holmes, 19, a semi-pro wrestler and former pupil at the school,
said: "I'm shocked. He was an alright teacher and a decent guy."

He added: "He was not one of those guys where you would go 'Oh no, I've got him next'."

Tom Blythe, also 19 and a former pupil at the school, said: "I didn't think the pupils would give him stick. He was actually a decent bloke and got involved in school plays."

He described the teacher as "a bit of a legend".

"It must have been serious for him to snap."

The Mayor of Mansfield, Tony Egginton, sent his daughter to the school.

He said: "It's exceedingly sad that this happened. We don't know the full details but it does seem bizarre that this has happened.

"It's very concerning."

He added: "All Saints is a very reputable school and it has performed extremely well. For this to happen is a bitter blow to their reputation, and the headteacher and the rest of the team have a massive job to build back their name."