Schools in England advised to assess risk of strip-search before calling police

Guidance issued after 15-year-old black girl known as Child Q was strip-searched by female police officers in 2020

Schools should assess and balance" the risk of a potential strip-search to a pupil's mental and physical wellbeing before calling the police, according to new government guidance.

The new advice for schools in England has been issued following national outcry over the treatment of a 15-year-old black girl, known as Child Q, who was strip-searched by female police officers in 2020 after she was wrongly suspected of carrying cannabis at her school in east London.