A school superintendent has resigned after an eight-year-old found his gun unattended in a bathroom. 

The firearm was discovered in Rising Star Elementary School in Texas – and many parents were furious because they were not informed about the incident when it happened.

The boy told his teacher about the gun, prompting the teacher to send him and another student to “go and be sure that’s what he found”.

After they had confirmed it was a weapon, they went straight to the superintendent’s office.

Robby Stuteville has now confirmed he will be stepping down, and the teacher has also been “talked to” following the incident, officials say.

Mr Stuteville said he had placed his gun in the stall while using the bathroom, and that it had been unattended for about 15 minutes.

His successor as superintendent, Monty Jones, said: “He took a lot of pride in his job, and it was an accident that happened and he felt extremely bad about it.”

Mr Jones explained that he and Mr Stuteville carried weapons on campus because of school shootings that have happened across the US.

He added that parents and staff were aware that they carried firearms, and they had both undergone week-long training that included how to use a gun and how to de-escalate a situation.