Parents demand answers after son, 4, 'goes missing from school' and was found 'running in the road'

Dad Wade Vassell searched frantically for his four-year-old son King Gabriel-Vassell who went missing from Oasis Academy Woodview in Edgbaston

The parents of a four-year-old boy are demanding answers after he went missing from his Birmingham school. King Gabriel-Vassell, who has complex special needs, managed to leave his classroom without anyone noticing and was found 'running in the road' by a stranger, his parents have claimed.

His dad Wade Vassell said he was told by a teacher that his son couldn't be located when he went to collect him from Oasis Academy Woodview in Edgbaston at 3.15pm on Thursday. Wade ran frantically around the school looking for King before heading outside.

Thankfully they were reunited following 15 agonising minutes after a concerned passerby had spotted King 'darting into the road and waited with him on the pavement'. King's parents are now keeping him home from school until they can be reassured of his safety.

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King's mother, Empress-Shashamane, 42, said: "King has significant learning and development issues, he's non-verbal, walks on tip-toes, has sensory issues, anxiety and needs a high level of supervision.

"He could've been abducted, anything could've happened -it keeps replaying in our minds. That woman saved his life- seconds later and he could've been run over. We have kept him at home since because we've lost trust in the school."

Wade said he got the 'shock of his life' when he went to pick up King last Thursday. The 51-year-old said: "I walked up to the classroom and one of the teacher's told me 'we cannot find your boy'. I replied 'what do you mean?'

Panicked and filled with fear, Wade rushed round the school grounds, classroom, searching for his child. He added: "I then went out of the school gate and saw a stranger holding him on Woodview Drive.

"The stranger said she had got him from the road, he was running in the road. It's a busy road.

"I got the shock of my life because I did not expect anything like that. I took him back to the school and I spoke to the principal and he said he was sorry and it was not acceptable. I took him home."

The parents, who have seven other children, have emailed the school a list of their concerns, including how long was he missing before staff noticed and safeguarding, but are yet to hear back from them.

The school does employ a SENDCO- special educational needs and/or disabilities coordinator.

A spokeswoman from Oasis Academy Woodview said: "At Oasis Academy Woodview, ensuring the safety and well-being of our students and staff remains our utmost priority. We take such incidents seriously, and an internal investigation is being conducted to understand the details surrounding a recent incident.

"The findings will be acted upon, and additional safeguarding protocols put in place as needed.”