Police hurt in knife incident at party in school

Four police officers have been hurt in an incident involving knives at a school, the Metropolitan Police has said.

Officers were called to a party at Elm Park Primary School in Hornchurch, east London at about 21:00 GMT on Saturday after a fight reportedly broke out.

The Met said three teenagers – a 14-year-old girl, a 16-year-old boy and a 17-year-old girl – were arrested at the scene on suspicion of assault on an emergency services worker and have since been bailed.

The force added two boys aged 15 and 17 were arrested in Hornchurch the following day on suspicion of possessing an offensive weapon and have been bailed.

CCTV evidence is being reviewed as part of the investigation, the Met added.

Footage posted on social media appears to show groups of teenagers screaming and running away from a smaller group gathered in the corner of a hall at the school.

The Met said officers “engaged with a number of teenagers at the event who became aggressive toward them”.

It added four officers were treated at the scene by London Ambulance Service medics, but did not require hospital treatment.

A 16-year-old boy and a 19-year-old man were taken to hospital with suspected knife wounds but their injuries were deemed neither life changing nor life-threatening, the police added in a statement.

Victoria Morris, executive headteacher at the school, said the people involved were not known to the school, and added they have been letting the premises to the local community for years and “stringent protocols” were in place.

She said they were “shocked” to hear of the disturbance at a private birthday party in the hall and have decided to stop renting the facility for evening events.

A statement on the school’s website said there would be a police presence around the school for the next week to offer reassurance to parents and residents.

A letter posted to X from the Met’s Supt Simon Hutchison said two people, believed to be guests at the party, “received minor injuries” and did not require further treatment.

Supt Hutchison wrote police arrived within “minutes” of being called, and during the initial confrontation four officers were injured “yet were still able to prevent this incident becoming significantly more serious.

“They showed tremendous bravery confronting this group despite the numbers and level of potential violence. I am proud of the courage that each of those officers showed.”

He said searches were carried out and a number of discarded weapons were discovered.

“I want to be clear that this type of behaviour will not be tolerated.

“We would ask the public not to speculate on social media as this can increase tensions in the community,” he added.

“At this stage we have no intelligence to suggest that any similar incidents are expected to take place.

“That said, we have contingencies, should we need to respond to any further disorder.”