School lockdowns live – Primaries in Manchester and Cheshire on alert after email threats to pupils and staff

Police have launched an investigation after malicious emails were sent to a number of schools in the north-west in what is now believed to be a “malicious hoax.”

Schools in Manchester, Cheshire and Liverpool have been placed on lockdown following the threats sent on Tuesday morning, with police officers in attendance to “provide reassurance” to staff.

Lache Primary School and Manchester High School for Girls are now no longer in lockdown. Meanwhile, Manchester Grammar School and Withington Girls’ School have been contacted for comment.

Police have launched an investigation after malicious emails were sent to a number of schools in the north-west which forced one of them to go into lockdown.

Both forces have now launched an investigation and officers have been visiting schools to provide reassurance.

Lache Primary School, in Chester, has told parents on its Facebook group that the school is in lockdown and parents are unable to pick up their children after receiving an “unpleasant email”.

It is not currently clear how many other schools have been sent the email or its exact contents.

Detective Chief Inspector Justin Hancock of CC said: “We would like to reassure parents that this is believed to be malicious and we are doing everything we can to locate the person responsible for these emails.”

Chief Inspector Chris Boyd of GMP’s City of Manchester Division, said: “We take reports of this nature very seriously and whilst we have not advised any schools to close, our officers will nevertheless be stepping up their high-visibility presence around schools at the end of the day today to provide reassurance to them and the wider public.”

Merseyside Police “haven’t been made aware of anything” involving schools in Liverpool, the Echo reports.

Some parents and guardians of students at Manchester High School for Girls heard about the threats made to the school via a “parent WhatsApp group”, the Manchester Evening News reports.

“It could have been frightening but everyone is okay”, one concerned parent told the publication.

Police have launched an investigation after malicious emails were sent to a number of schools in the north-west.

Lache Primary School, in Chester, has told parents on its Facebook group that the school is in lockdown and parents are unable to pick up their children after receiving an “unpleasant email”.

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A police riot van was confirmed to be at Manchester High School for Girls, Manchester Evening News reports.

Chief Inspector Chris Boyd of GMP’s City of Manchester Division, said: “We take reports of this nature very seriously and whilst we have not advised any schools to close, our officers will nevertheless be stepping up their high-visibility presence around schools at the end of the day today to provide reassurance to them and the wider public.”

The aunt of a 7-year-old pupil at Lache Primary School has said that there was “no police presence” at the school, with officers “only arriving” after parents “turned up.”

“It was a stressful day as my 7 y/o niece is a pupil. A Lot of parents gathered outside the school after the school posted a very vague Facebook post”, the pupil’s aunt told The Independent.

“There was NO police presence, police only arrived after parents turned up (I assume this was to stop a mob).

“Some parents suggested they would force enter to retrieve their children.

“There was a lack of communication from the schools part and the police. Then after hours of stress no official statement was made and the gates opened.”

The latest news comes just one day after a number of schools in Hull were placed in lockdown following malicious emails, The Mirror reports.

Parents and guardians across two primary schools later received communications from the school that following police probes, the messages had turned out to be a “hoax.

Blacon High School, also in Chester, confirmed on its Facebook page that it is not currently in lockdown.

In a statement, it added: “However, we have taken precautions and put in place some additional measures to ensure that all students and staff remain safe in school. I will update you with any further information as it becomes available.”