A retired Metropolitan Police detective has declared that parents should be able to trust their children's safety at school, following today's murder conviction of a 15-year-old who fatally stabbed classmate Harvey Willgoose in Sheffield.

Mike Neville expressed his sympathy for Willgoose's family on GB News, stating: "My heart goes out, as a parent, to Harvey's family.

"When we send our children to school, we expect them to be safe, don't we? It was very safe when I was at school.

GB NEWS

"But last year, Channel 4 reported there were 150 knife incidents in schools that means stabbings or robberies. If you break that down across the school year, that’s around four incidents per week.

"We often associate these things with London, don’t we? We think of knife crime as something that happens late at night almost like a Jack the Ripper scenario but now it’s in schools across the country.

"We saw last year two girls found guilty of stabbing two teachers and a pupil in South Wales. So, really, action has got to be taken here.

"What we see all the time is the Government talking tough on knife crime they’ll come out with hot air like banning samurai swords but what they don’t do is sentence people properly.

"Only about 30 per cent of people found in possession of a knife are sent to jail. Even among those caught a second time or more, only 40 per cent receive a custodial sentence."

The teenage defendant was convicted of murder at Sheffield Crown Court today after jurors rejected his manslaughter plea. The verdict came by an 11-1 majority following a month-long trial.

The fatal attack occurred on 3 February at All Saints Catholic High School when the unnamed defendant brought a 13-centimetre hunting knife onto school premises. He stabbed Harvey twice in the chest outside the cafeteria within minutes of lunch break starting.

The killer had claimed memory loss regarding the stabbing, telling the court he couldn't recall the moment he attacked Harvey.

Prosecutors dismissed this as fabrication.

Evidence revealed the defendant's fixation with weapons, including photographs discovered on his mobile showing him posing with various knives.

Facebook | Willgoose, 15, died after being stabbed at school in Sheffield

He had also recorded himself wielding a blade on school grounds, posting the footage online as a threat to other pupils.

Harvey's mother Caroline revealed her son experienced anxiety about attending school and was reluctant to go. She told Sky News she felt she had "led [her son] into the lion's den" after encouraging him to attend.

"We badgered Harvey into going to school but I don't think people realise that there is a problem in all schools with knives," Mrs Willgoose said. "It's a way of life now for kids, and it needs to stop."

The grieving parents believe the school failed to respond adequately to earlier knife-related incidents involving the defendant.