Family of murdered teen Harvey Willgoose calls for knife arches in schools

Harvey, 15, was stabbed in the heart in front of horrified children by Khan, who had taken a hunting knife to school.

Today, 15-year-old Mohammed Umar Khan was jailed for a minimum of 16 years for the killing.

Since Harvey’s death, his family have campaigned against knife crime, with a particular focus on getting knife-arches into schools.

Speaking to ITV, Harvey’s mum, Caroline, said: “I’m not scaremongering, but there is a big problem out there.

“People say it’s frightening for children to go through arches – but they’re frightened anyway.”

Echoing Ms Willgoose’s calls, Sheffield deputy mayor Kilvinder Vigurs said Britain must “do more” to protect its children.

"My heart goes out to Harvey's parents, Caroline and Mark, whose strength and dignity throughout this unimaginable ordeal has been nothing short of extraordinary,” she said.

"Their courage reminds us why we must do more to protect our children from the threat of knife crime."

Speaking following Khan’s sentencing today, All Saints Catholic High School in Sheffield said Harvey Willgoose is “dearly missed every day by the whole school community”.

The statement read: “Our thoughts are first and foremost with Harvey’s family, loved ones and friends.

“We cannot begin to imagine the depth of their loss and our deepest sympathies go out to them today and every day.

“This tragedy has also deeply affected our community and we continue to do what we can to support all those impacted.

“Harvey was a popular, energetic and fun-loving pupil who is dearly missed every day by the whole school community.

“We thank the court, police and other relevant agencies for their diligent and professional work throughout this process.

“Since the conclusion of the trial, the school and trust have been able to engage fully with a number of ongoing investigations aimed at answering key questions about Harvey’s tragic death.

“We will continue to work closely with these partners and cooperate fully with these investigations.”

Sentencing judge Mrs Justice Ellenbogen said there were records which showed Mohammed Umar Khan had an “inability to manage” his anger.

Khan showed no reaction as he stood in the dock at Sheffield Crown Court for his sentencing.

Referring to a visit by a police officer at Khan’s home in December 2024 after his mother found photographs of him posing with weapons, the judge said: “He advised you about the dangers of carrying weapons, advice which you ignored.

“Prior to February 3, 2025, there had been at least one other occasion on which you had been in possession of a weapon, a knife, on school premises, captured in a video clip and in photographs.

“Notwithstanding all of this, throughout your trial, you sought to minimise the extent of your interest, and gave explanations for the way in which photographs of weapons had come to be on your phone which were, put simply, not believable.

“Over the period spanning November 2024 and January 2025, there had been three separate incidents in which you had become angry and aggressive towards a person and/or property at school.

“Other records indicate your longstanding inability to manage your anger.”

The jury was shown CCTV footage of the incident which showed how Harvey was stabbed twice.

One of these blows cut through one of his ribs and pierced his heart.

Over the weekend before the stabbing on Monday morning, Harvey and Khan fell out on social media, with each siding with a different boy involved in the lockdown incident.

When Khan returned to school on Monday February 3, he was asked by Mr Davis whether he had anything he should not and said he did not.

The jury has heard about a series of encounters between Harvey and Khan that morning before Khan pulled out the knife and used it just after the start of the lunch break, which began at 12.10pm.

The court was shown images and video found on Khan’s phone which captured him posing with knives and other weapons, and was told how he had used search terms relating to weapons on the internet.

Khan told the court how he decided to carry a knife for protection as he feared other teenagers whom he believed were carrying weapons.

His barrister Gul Nawaz Hussain KC told the jury that Khan “snapped” after years of bullying and “an intense period of fear at school”.