The two officers, who are stationed at the school, said a rival gang member had been walking his girlfriend to school when the attempted attack took place.

The panga was confiscated; however, both suspects managed to flee. “The one suspect, who was in his late twenties, said he had just finished serving 15 years in jail. The other suspect is in his early twenties,” said officer Nonqaba Zondi.

Principal Noel Cleophas said the frequency of incidents like these had decreased, despite the school’s location.

“Ever since the last year when the officers started here, gang members don’t jump over the fence to rob students or force them to buy drugs through the fence. We are winning the battle... a little.”

Smith said last month, 1834 people and 93 premises were searched. In total 40 arrests were made and 459 mandrax tablets confiscated.

The NST was officially deployed in Delft 11 months ago as a pilot project.

Since then, according to Ward 106 PR Councillor Roxanne Moses,there had been a dramatic turnaround in terms of response time and visibility, especially in Blikkiesdorp.

“I can say that schools in Delft are now safer. In Blikkiesdorp, the officers patrol for about two hours a day and have the co-operation of the community.”

She added that Blikkiesdorp has about 1600 informal dwellings, with a minimum of five people per structure.