A man is being held by police accused of firing a shot at police officers in Cobham Road, Ilford yesterday.

Police came under fire from the gunman in his car as they responded to reports of a domestic dispute in Holmwood Road, Ilford just before noon yesterday.

While the officers escaped unharmed, a major operation was launched with armed police scouring the area for the man.

At one point a Holmwood Road bungalow, just yards from the playground of South Park Primary School, appeared to be under siege when more than 20 officers with pistols, machine guns and dogs surrounded it.

A police spokesman said this afternoon that police answering a 999 call about a domestic dispute spoke to members of the man’s family at an address in Holmwood Road.

He added: “They then conducted a search of surrounding roads for a male suspect.

“He was stopped on the corner of Cobham Road and Asher Road where he threatened officers and fired a shot.

“A 33-year-old man was arrested at 3pm in Northamptonshire and he remains in custody there.”

Children at South Park school were kept inside the building during the incident.