Religious and educational leaders have spoken out after a 15-year-old boy was stabbed to death at All Saints Catholic High School in the north-England city of Sheffield at the start of the week.
On 3 February, Harvey Willgoose was reportedly stabbed three times by another student while on his way to a lesson around noon. The emergency services were called, but despite the best efforts of paramedics, the teenager died a short time later.
“Yesterday All Saints Catholic High School lost one of our own in the most shocking and tragic of circumstances,” Steve Davies, CEO of St Clare Catholic Multi Academy Trust, said in a statement released on the evening of 4 February.
“Harvey was an invaluable part of our school community. An immensely popular young man with his fellow students and teachers alike, he had a smile that would light up the room. Harvey was young. He was precious. He was loved.
“We are all struggling to process what has happened and our thoughts and prayers are with Harvey’s family and friends at this incredibly difficult time.
“It is unimaginable to comprehend what they are going through and whilst there are no words that will take away the pain and grief from Harvey’s family and friends, I simply want to express, on behalf of the whole school community, our heartfelt condolences.
“A tragic and shocking incident such as this shakes us to our core and is the opposite of the ethos of what All Saints stands for – a loving, caring school community.
“We now need to focus on how we can support those grieving the loss of their precious family member, friend and student.
“We have been grateful for the number of other agencies and services who have reached out and, together with our wider Trust family of schools, we will do all we can to support leaders and staff at the school as they help their community to navigate through the days, weeks and months ahead.”
He added: “I understand and appreciate the upset and fear that families will be feeling at this time.
“All Saints has always been proud of the warmth, care and love that the school is known for. We will all need to draw on those qualities in rebuilding confidence.
“We are assisting the police in their ongoing investigation and echo their call to refrain from engaging in speculation and misinformation whilst they establish the facts behind this tragic incident.”
Bishop Ralph Heskett, the Bishop of Hallam, said:
“Our prayers, and those of every parish and school, are with Harvey, his parents, family, and friends for a young life lost and all those affected by this tragedy.
“My thoughts are also with the students, staff and community of All Saints Catholic High School at this time.
“In God’s peace, and in God’s presence, we must come together as a community of faith to comfort each other.
The bishop said that he will be asking all priests of the diocese to offer Mass for Harvey. He also noted that St Marie's Cathedral is open for those wanting a place for private prayer at this difficult time, and that there will be a Mass held for Harvey's intention at St Joseph's, Handsworth, at 10 a.m. on Saturday, 8 February.
“We ask for the loving intercession of Our Lady of Perpetual Help to comfort all those in mourning,” the bishop said.
Father Mark McManus, the parish priest at St Joseph’s in Handsworth, said:
“Harvey was a former pupil of St Joseph’s Academy and, along with the members of our community who attend All Saints High School, many will have been affected by his death – some very closely.
“Our parish has a particular bond with St Joseph’s School and close ties with All Saints School. It would then seem most appropriate that we offer our support wherever and whenever we can and most especially through our public prayer.
“Our Mass will be offered for Harvey and his family and friends, for the two school communities and for all who have been marked or touched by this terrible tragedy."
The parish priest concluded by saying: “Eternal rest grant unto Harvey, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him.”
Following the incident, a 15-year-old boy has been arrested on suspicion of murder and remains in police custody.
A police statement said officers are “working at pace to build a full picture of what has happened” and that police will remain stationed at the school and in the local area to offer reassurance to those affected.
In recent years, knife crime has become an increasing source of concern across the United Kingdom. In England and Wales alone, 78 young people under the age of 25 were murdered with a knife or sharp object in the 12 months leading up to March 2023. In the year ending March 2024, there were 1,439 hospital admissions for young people under 24 due to knife-related injuries.<br><br>It has been reported by the <em>BBC</em> that less than a week before Harvey's death, the school was placed in "lockdown" following an incident on 29 January, when staff and students were ordered to stay put over “threats of violence” between a “small number of students”.
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<em>Photo: Police and crime scene investigators work at All Saints Catholic High School after the fatal stabbing of Harvey Willgoose, Sheffield, England, 4 February 2025. (Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images.)</em>
