IT WAS the actions of an enthusiastic pupil but it caused a major security alert at a large Southampton school.

More than 1,100 children at the school were evacuated after a year eight youngster brought in part of a shell to show his teacher and class mates.

But when the pupil produced his piece of ordnance at Bitterne Park School it sparked concerns and staff called the police.

As a result students from Years seven to ten at the Copsewood Road site were evacuated for 40 minutes while police and the bomb squad investigated.

The ten-inch tip of a shell was brought in by the pupil keen to contribute to the school’s Battle of the Somme commemorations.

Having found the item on a family trip to a Dorset firing range at the weekend, the 12-year-old brought it in to show his teacher as part of an “alternative history lesson,” headteacher Susan Trigger said.

She added: “Show and tell is alive and well at secondary schools. We have been doing quite a lot of work about the Battle of the Somme – it’s such a powerful message and students have been very good at bringing stuff in.

“It’s an old bit of ordnance and after looking at it we had some concerns over where it had appeared from as it was quite unusual and we realised we needed to take some advice.

“The pupil described it as being found on a firing range. We moved the item and secured it and then took police advice.

“We put a cordon around the area and then following that took the decision to evacuate students to the fire area.

“We were told it was probably not a risk but we had done the right thing. It was disposed of.

“The pupil was a bit shocked but because we could place it and where it had come from we could reassure him. And we could see the funny side afterwards.”

“The experts confirmed it was part of a weapon.”

A police spokeswoman said: “The Explosive Ordnance Disposal team were called, looked at the device, deemed it safe and removed it from the scene.”