Pupils are being offered refuge in local shops after the school day in areas of London blighted by gang violence, it has emerged.
One school in the capital has ordered Ubers for students deemed most at risk as headteachers attempt to stem the tide of violent crime among youths, the Times reported.
It comes after five fatal stabbings on the city’s streets in just six days, including a 16-year-old in Tulse HIll, a 15-year-old in Bellingham, a 17-year-old in West Hampstead and another 17-year-old outside Clapham South tube station.
Their deaths have brought the total number of murders in London this year up to 119. Many have involved schoolchildren.
At Harris Boys Academy East Dulwich, pupils are encouraged to make use of ‘safe havens’ on their way home if they feel vulnerable. These are local shops where a member of staff has been trained by police, and will lock the premises if required.
The scheme was initially launched after the death of Lewisham schoolboy Jimmy Mizen, 16, in 2008.
A police officer also regularly briefs staff at the school on gangs in the area and their spheres of influence, so that pupils in danger can be identified, according to the Times.
Chris Everitt, the head teacher, told the paper: “We have to tackle this head on. We can’t shy away from it when we know pupils are at risk.
“When they come through the school gate they can leave this behind, but they have to go back out again. We want to give them the best possible chance not to be sucked into gangs.”
Boys at the school are often given workshops and lessons on gang behaviour in a bid to deter them.
Mr Everitt added: “Kids are told about the amount of money they can make by trafficking drugs, hundreds of pounds a time to buy whatever trainers they want.
“They don’t understand the consequences, that they will be indebted to the gangs, owned and exploited. That’s how it is.”
In west London, the headteacher at Hurlingham Academy is known to cycle around the streets near the school in order to move on any loitering pupils.
At Thomas Tallis School in Greenwich, there is a pupil dispersal system which sees teachers patrolling local shops.
