Parents are demanding metal detectors be installed after a student allegedly pulled a knife on a teacher at a Western Sydney school.
Chifley College Dunheved in St Mary’s was locked down on Thursday after a staff member attempted to disarm a 13-year-old girl who allegedly brought a large kitchen knife on to school grounds and wielded it in front of a teacher.
Police and paramedics arrived at the College at 1.20pm on Thursday afternoon after receiving reports of the incident. NSW Ambulance treated a staff member who suffered a small cut while trying to disarm the girl.
“A staff member sustained a small laceration while reportedly trying to confiscate the knife, before police arrived,” NSW Police said in a statement. “NSW Ambulance paramedics treated the staff member and have taken the child/teen to hospital for assessment.”
The girl was taken to hospital for assessment. No students were injured.
Some of the school’s parents are now calling for metal detectors to installed in the wake of the incident.
“Our kids are supposed to be safe at schools, and apparently they’re not,” parent, Vanessa D’Silva told 7News yesterday.
In a television interview on Sunrise this morning, Federal Education Minister, Jason Clare said he supported the move but said it’s ultimately a matter for the States and Territories to decide.
“This could have been much, much worse. The teachers at the school, the parents and the students must be reeling today,” Minister Clare told Sunrise’s Natalie Barr.
“And for all of Sydney, we’ve still got, the anxiety with Bondi and with Wakeley. We talked about this after Bondi a couple of weeks ago, and we were talking about Jack’s Law in Queensland, and why we need that here in New South Wales.”
Minister Clare noted that the NSW Government is looking to give police the power to have mobile metal detectors that they can carry and use in designated places.
“They’re looking at the final framing of those laws. I trust the New South Wales Government to work with the police and get this right,” he said. “What we’ve got to do is make sure we keep our children safe.”
Minister Clare said he trusts the NSW Government “will craft those laws in a way that’s going to make sure that we keep our kids safe, whether they’re at school, or whether they’re on the train or the bus or anywhere else.”
“Ultimately, it’s a matter for the State Government; it’s their decision to make here, but, I’ll work with State Governments on all of the things that we need to do to make sure that we keep our kids safe.”