By Lucy Thornton
A teacher wept as she gave evidence about the death of schoolboy Harvey Willgoose who was allegedly stabbed with “severe force” by a hunting knife. The 15-year-old was stabbed twice during his school lunch break with a 13cm knife which was plunged into his heart. Assistant head of Year 10, Claire Staniforth, broke down as she told the jury about her chat with Harvey, just before he died at lunch time. She’d told him he could have dinner with her but, she told the court: “He never arrived.” It is claimed the deadly attack happened following a Snapchat row with a fellow pupil. Another boy, 15, who cannot be named for legal reasons, is on trial accused of Harvey’s murder which he denies. He has admitted manslaughter and possession of a knife. A jury has been shown graphic CCTV of the alleged murder on Monday, February 3 at All Saints Catholic High School. The stabbing took place in the courtyard at lunch time, which left pupils fleeing in “fear and panic”. The teacher, Ms Staniforth, who was one of the deputy safe guarding officers at the school and has worked there for nine years, was clearly emotional as she gave evidence on Thursday morning. She told how weeks before the alleged murder the defendant’s mum had alerted them about something she’d found in her son’s bag. She recalled how the school received a phone call from his mum in December 2024, on the last day of term before Christmas. She came in with a picture of what she said was a ‘knife’. But when they saw the photograph, it was an ‘axe’, she said. 鈥淭he school had received a call from (the defendant鈥檚 mum) saying she had found a knife in his gym bag at home. She wanted to come into school to discuss what she had found鈥 she met with myself and [another teacher],鈥 she said. Breaking down in tears, she added his mum had a picture: 鈥淚t was an axe, it had rope around the handle. A photograph was taken and sent to South Yorkshire Police.鈥 Previously the trial was told a police officer went round to the defendant’s house to speak to him about the axe and advised him about the dangers. “Tragically (the defendant) chose not to heed that advice,” Richard Thyne KC, prosecuting, told the jury when he opened the case. During evidence on Thursday, the teacher said the defendant once arrived at her office “shaking with anger” and “rubbing his hands” after being told off for having a mobile phone in class. Ms Staniforth said the defendant had 鈥渆nded up punching the computer screen,” leaving his classroom and coming to her office. The court heard the defendant had told her he had not been on his phone. They then, she said, had a chat about why he鈥檇 changed schools and he asked her “didn’t she know” he had actually beaten somebody up and blinded them. The court was told he had not actually blinded someone. “I was shocked but I didn鈥檛 want to show panic and worry because he was still trying to calm down from coming from the lesson where he鈥檇 been accused of being on the mobile phone,” the teacher said. Continuing her evidence, the teacher said she’d been told the defendant鈥檚 aunt phoned the school on the Friday before the stabbing to say he wasn鈥檛 coming in because he was 鈥渢oo scared鈥. Talking about her relationship with Harvey, she said: 鈥淢ine and Harvey鈥檚 relationship was funny, we had a good laugh together about things. When he did attend school he would come and see me, make sure I was okay, I would make sure he was okay. 鈥淗e made me laugh, we鈥檇 make each other laugh, a bit cheeky sometimes but he鈥檇 never overstep the boundaries with me.鈥 She said he was behind in his lessons, adding: 鈥淗arvey didn鈥檛 attend school very often鈥 he鈥檇 sometimes get a bit upset. He didn’t know what was happening in the lessons and he would come to me at that point.鈥 She spoke to Harvey on the phone just minutes before he died at lunch. He spoke to her from the isolation room, where he鈥檇 gone because he didn鈥檛 want to go back to a lesson because of the defendant, who he said had rubbed his fists on his chest. The teacher said: 鈥淗e said 鈥楬i Bestie鈥. He was quickly told by [another teacher]; 鈥榊ou mean Mrs Staniforth!鈥 He said he鈥檇 been talking to a girl in there, she was from another school and he laughed and said 鈥榙on鈥檛 tell her anything about me鈥. “He was laughing. I said I was going to get some dinner and asked if he was going to get any dinner and he said 鈥榥o鈥.” Still crying, she added: “I said if he wanted to come up to the office and spend his dinner with me, he could. He never arrived.鈥 The trial continues