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<p>The department does not hold data on how many weapons have been seized in schools.</p><p>The
statutory ‘Keeping Children Safe in Education’ (KCSIE) guidance advises schools on
creating safe environments. KCSIE is clear that all staff should have an awareness
of safeguarding issues that can put children at risk of harm. The ‘Searching, Screening
and Confiscation’ Guidance was updated in 2022 to emphasise the importance of the
school duty to safeguard and promote the welfare of all pupils and staff. Headteachers,
and the staff they authorise, have a statutory power to search a pupil or their possessions,
where they have reasonable grounds to suspect that the pupil may have a prohibited
item, such as knives or weapons, and confiscate such items.</p><p>The department works
across government, and with other partners, on initiatives to prevent serious violence,
including knife crime. Over £50 million has been made available to fund specialist
support in mainstream and alternative provision schools in the areas where serious
violence most affects children and communities. This includes SAFE (‘Support, Attend,
Fulfil, Exceed’) taskforces that have been established in ten areas, reaching over
2,100 children as of September 2023. Taskforces are school-led partnerships investing
in evidence-based interventions in and around school, such as mentoring and social
skills training, that reach children early on, to re-engage them in their education
and reduce their involvement in serious violence. To benefit areas outside of the
programme, the department has published a supportive guide on school-based interventions,
which is available at: <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/safe-taskforces"
target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/safe-taskforces</a>.</p>
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