POLICE officers surrounded a house in a Basingstoke suburb after a teenager armed with a large kitchen knife locked himself inside his home. A specially-trained police negotiator was called in to help end the drama, which unfolded in the South Ham area at around 2pm on Friday.

A worried neighbour had called the police after spotting the boy with the knife, and a tense two-and-a-half-hour stand-off followed as officers tried to coax the youth out of the property.

Around 10 police officers from Basingstoke attended the incident, along with officers carrying shields from the Force Support Unit at Netley, and a police dog-handler.

The property and the adjacent house were cordoned off and an ambulance was put on standby near the scene.

The parents of the teenager, who were out when he locked himself inside, joined police officers nearby, and liaised closely with them throughout.

Speaking during the incident, Inspector Clive Marsh, of Basingstoke police, said: "We've got the premises contained, and we are trying to get him to come out peacefully.

"An officer is trying to speak to him through the letterbox and on the telephone, but he's refusing to speak to us. We're trying to get him to come out safely without harm to himself or anyone else."

When initial attempts to persuade the teenager to come out of the house failed, the police called in additional help from a specialist negotiator.

Chief Inspector Chris Brown, of Basingstoke police, said: "This specialist is trained to negotiate in these circumstances. We had concerns for this person's welfare and we needed to look at the situation."

At around 4.20pm, officers from the Force Support Unit forced open the back door and went into the house where they detained the teenager, who was brought out unharmed.

Speaking afterwards, Chief Insp Brown explained: "The situation reached the stage where the negotiator felt it could not be resolved as there was no communication with the person inside the house.

"For the welfare of the people concerned, things were rought to a speedy conclusion. The person inside was detained peacefully and was taken to Basingstoke police station."

No residents were evacuated during the incident, although the police did ask people to keep their distance from the house.

A crowd of concerned neighbours and curious schoolchildren watched the drama unfold.

One neighbour said: "This is a very quiet area and you don't expect this kind of thing. Everyone keeps themselves to themselves, but then you come home to see this - it feels unreal."

Speaking on Saturday, Insp Peter Page, of Basingstoke police, said the teenager was released on bail without charge.

He is due back at Basingstoke police station next month after police and other agencies have had time to fully investigate the matter.