Bomb disposal team called after pupil takes artillery shell to show-and-tell

A primary school was evacuated after a pupil took an artillery shell to show-and-tell.

It is believed a year five student at St Margaret’s Church of England Primary School in the village of Bowers Gifford, Essex, took the 20cm artillery shell into class on Wednesday.

An email was sent to parents asking them to collect their children after the alert at about 1.30pm.

Pupil Harvey Harris, 10, told the Basildon Echo: “A boy brought it in to show the class, but no one really knew what it was and the teachers didn’t know what it was either.”

The device was taken to a nearby field while 250 pupils gathered at a safe distance.

Army bomb disposal teams were called and decided the device posed no danger.

A spokesman for St Margaret’s Church of England School said: “We take the safety and wellbeing of all students extremely seriously.

“We took the precaution of calling police community support officers and then followed their expert advice.”