story by the BBC showed that in Edinburgh last year “31 youths under the age of 16 were charged by police after being caught carrying knives”. This statistic included seven primary school pupils and raises concerns over the safety of both pupils and teachers in Edinburgh schools.

Politicians and parents' groups have called for more education in schools.

Liz Smith MSP, said: "Headteachers should have powers to search for weapons if they suspect a child has come into school carrying a weapon and they should be able to take action to isolate that child."

Tina Woolnough, chairwoman of Parents in Partnership, said there needed to be a shake-up in the way children were educated about knife crime. She said: "At school, children learn about keeping themselves safe and healthy and I think information about knives should be included in the standard package.

A recent report by Alan Steer, published in April cited the need for teachers to be more aware of existing powers to deal with problem behaviour. For a full copy of this report please click here.

If you would like help or advice on dealing with discipline in your school you can call our free, confidential Support Line on 0800 564 2270.

The following factsheets from our online InfoCentres may also be useful:

• Behaviour, discipline and exclusion: a brief guide to the provisions of the Education and Inspection Act 2006
• Managing pupil behaviour – dealing with aggression
• Pupil behaviour and teacher wellbeing
• Aggression from students and pupils and how to react