CHEPSTOW school imposed a “precautionary lockdown” on Friday after an incident which led the police to deploy specially trained firearms officers.

The school on Welsh Street entered lockdown following police advice on Friday, November 10, a spokesperson for Monmouthshire County Council has confirmed.

Gwent Police officers were carrying out arrest enquiries near junction 2 of the M48. A 38-year-old man from the Chepstow area was arrested on suspicion of assault and criminal damage.

The junction 2 eastbound slip road, near Chepstow, was closed for around four hours.

A police helicopter has been circling Monmouthshire over the past week in a bid to find wanted man Gareth Jenkins.

Chepstow School on Welsh Street sent an email to parents just after 2pm on Friday, saying an “emergency situation” had arisen and the school had initiated lockdown procedures.

The school asked parents to refrain from contacting the school so that contact with the emergency services could be prioritised.

Around two hours later, the school issued a statement on social media platform X (formerly Twitter).

The statement read: “Earlier today the school went into a precautionary lockdown on the basis of an incident in the vicinity.

“This was purely precautionary. There was no threat to staff or students on site.

“Children were exemplary during the process.”