Arrested teacher 'hit boy with metal weight'

A 14-year-old boy remained seriously ill in hospital today after allegedly being hit with a metal weight by his science teacher during a lesson.

Jack Waterhouse received serious head injuries after the incident at All Saints' Roman Catholic School in Mansfield, Nottinghamshire, on Wednesday morning.

The boy's science teacher Peter Harvey, 49, is being questioned by police after being arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.

He is also being quizzed about assaults on another boy and a girl at the school at the same time.

Officers were called to the school in Broomhill Lane after paramedics were called and arrived to find Jack unconscious in a pool of blood at the entrance to a classroom in the science block.

There were more than 20 pupils in the classroom at 11am on Wednesday when it appears a row erupted between the boy and the teacher.

According to parents, Mr Harvey allegedly "snapped" and lashed out at Jack with a weight used to teach science.

Detective Superintendent Adrian Pearson, who is leading the investigation into what happened, said: "The school, the teachers and the parents are absolutely shocked. It was a trauma to all those involved.

"It was a full, lively classroom and I can understand the trauma to all the staff. Something like this is very, very rare and it's important to get to the truth of what has happened.

"We have a full picture of what has taken place and so the welfare of the child and his family are the main concern."

Mr Harvey, who is local to the area, remains in custody at Mansfield police station.

Detectives have until 8.15pm today to question the teacher when they will either have to release him, charge him or ask for a time extension so they can quiz him further.

Jack was taken from the blood-spattered classroom to the King's Mill Hospital in Mansfield, where his condition deteriorated.

He was transferred later that day to a specialist head injury unit at the Queen's Medical Centre in Nottingham.

Police said there was grave concern for his life but his condition, while it remained serious, had since stabilised.

He has not yet undergone surgery and his parents were at his bedside, Nottinghamshire Police added.

Another boy and a girl, both 14 and in Jack's Year 9 class, were allegedly assaulted during the same incident. They did not need hospital treatment.

Police refused to say whether they were injured after leaping to their classmate's defence.

Meanwhile, a team of 12 dedicated officers have been questioning the boy's classmates with their parents present.

Forensics officers also examined the classroom, which was reopened but was not used for lessons yesterday.

Parents at the school gates today were stunned by the incident.

One 27-year-old 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."

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

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.

"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."

All Saints describes itself as a "lively, Catholic comprehensive school with a very special, warm ethos".

Originally opened in 1974, the school has around 1,100 pupils, with just under 200 in the sixth form. It became a Performing Arts College in 2002.

The school was given a satisfactory rating following its last Ofsted inspection.

Inspectors rated pupils behaviour as "good", although their attendance was given a satisfactory rating.

Last summer, 45% of pupils got five good GCSEs (grade A*-C), including English and maths.