Northampton mother speaks out after son, 14, held at knifepoint in broad daylight near next to primary school

A mother has spoken out about the 'terrifying' ordeal her 14-year-old son faced when he was held at knifepoint while walking home from school.

The mother, Eleanor, who wishes to only use her first name, said her son was walking home when a man with an Irish accent confronted him.

Her 14-year-old son was walking along Queen Eleanor Road in Far Cotton at 4.15pm when the man pulled a switchblade knife out and demanded money.

Eleanor said: "He was walking back on his own when this guy approached him and flicked out a knife. He said to my son, 'give me your money'. My son saw the knife and legged it.

"He got home and I could see he was a bit sheepish but I just thought he got in trouble at school. He was quiet and I could tell he was not ok. He played on his Xbox for two hours before telling me.

"I was terrified when he told me what happened. We have lived in Far Cotton for 13 years and, generally, it's a really nice area. But something like that happening in the daytime to a child in school uniform on his own is terrifying. No-one should be carrying a blade."

When Eleanor asked her son for a description of the man, he replied: "Mum, this guy had a knife. All I was looking at was the knife."

However, the son did say the man was white and short in height.

The mother later took to Facebook to make others in her area aware of the incident. The post has since been shared 150 times. She has also reported the incident to police.

"I just want other people to be aware of it. I just want to say thank you for everyone who shared the post and for the messages of support. My son is doing fine," Eleanor said.

Far Cotton councillor Julie Davenport described incident as 'outrageous'.

The councillor said: "It's outrageous and scary to think we have got to that point. It would have been very scary for the mother, I can't imagine what that's like."

Councillor Davenport has since urged anyone who sees anything suspicious to report it to police or anonymously to Crimestoppers.

She said: "Information helps police build up intelligence, which is so important."

Northamptonshire Police have been contacted for comment.