THEY'RE killers. These are weapons seized from Hampshire school children that could bring terror to the classroom.

An appalling collection of lethal weapons has been seized from youngsters by teachers in Southampton in the last 12 months.

And even more shocking is these are not the worst.

Items such as ballbearing guns, hunting knives and martial arts weapons have had to be returned to parents after being confiscated from children.

Teachers in the city are highlighting a rising tide of violence in schools, which they say is forcing people out of the profession and harming youngsters' learning.

The items seized include a microphone stand used by a teenager to threaten a teacher, a makeshift mallet and a knife.

"Teachers are feeling there is something going wrong in the classroom," said former city teacher Steve Godsmark, who now works for the National Association of Schoolmasters and the Union of Women Teachers.

"Within Southampton there are some calm schools, such as Woolston, but there are others where their grip on pupil behaviour is very tenuous. I think Southampton has a growing problem."

"Some Southampton schools are comparable with London, Birmingham and Manchester for classroom violence," said another city teacher and NASUWT representative Ron Clooney.

"People think Southampton is some sleepy backwater, but it's not.

"We are saying enough is enough. Let's stop turning a blind eye."

Both say a city council inclusion policy, which aims to keep youngsters in mainstream schools where possible, has aggravated the situation and causes violent youngsters to be returned to classrooms, often after just a brief suspension.

They want to see troubled youngsters taken out of classes, where they can wreak havoc with discipline, and given one-to-one tutoring as well as more contact with police and social services.

"Teachers are not society's zoo keepers. They want to teach," said Mr Clooney. "Schools are a central part of the community but they are not a community centre.

"We don't want to disadvantage these children or put them on the educational scrap heap. What we are saying is there needs to be adequate provision for them."

A city council statement said: "In Southampton we take the issue of children's behaviour very seriously and condemn any examples of violent or abusive behaviour in our classrooms.

"We believe that managing children's behaviour is a shared responsibility between the LEA and its schools, and parents and the community.

"Since we became a unitary authority six years ago we have considerably increased the resources delegated to schools for pupils with learning difficulties and behavioural problems."

What do you think? Are the city's classrooms becoming more violent?

Tell us your opinions and stories by contacting Gareth Lewis using the email link above or by ringing the Daily Echo News Desk on 023 8042 4519.