Gloucestershire Police are searching for two men after what the force described as an altercation on Chalford Road in Tuffley, Gloucester, shortly after 8:50 a.m. on Friday. Armed officers, a drone unit and the National Police Air Service responded as St Peter's High School and Willow Primary Academy went into lockdown during the morning drop-off window.
What police report
According to the force, two teenage boys were chased by two males, one of whom was believed to be carrying a sword. A 17-year-old suffered a superficial wound police attribute to the blade; another 17-year-old was not injured. Police corrected an earlier statement suggesting the wounded boy had been taken to hospital, saying that information was wrong.
A woman was arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender after officers stopped a vehicle and remains in custody. The two male suspects fled on foot and had not been located as of late Friday. Police described both as white males—one in his late teens to early 20s, about 6 feet tall and wearing white sliders, the other about 5 feet 5 inches tall, slim, in black clothing.
Schools and pupils
Staff at St Peter's enacted lockdown procedures while pupils sheltered in classrooms for roughly two to three hours, according to accounts gathered by the BBC. A 15-year-old pupil told reporters the school's alarm sounded and screens displayed a lockdown message, with lights off and doors locked until police cleared the building. All pupils were sent home once the site was secured; officers remained outside both schools into the afternoon.
Detective Inspector Sophie Dawkins said the incident near a school at drop-off time would have caused understandable concern. She asked anyone with dashcam or other footage who has not yet spoken to police to come forward, citing reference 53260095808.
Community impact
Police said they did not believe there was a wider threat to the neighborhood after the initial search, though the manhunt continued. Local events unrelated to the schools were unaffected beyond traffic disruption around Chalford Road.
The case sits alongside a separate firearms incident in South Wales later on Friday; Gloucestershire officials emphasized that the Tuffley inquiry remained confined to the Tuffley area. Investigators will need to establish motive and whether the encounter was targeted or random before charging decisions beyond the arrest already made.
Neighborhood teams planned continued patrols over the weekend while forensic work on Chalford Road continued. Head teachers said counselling would be available when pupils return, though no reopening date was fixed pending police clearance.