Schools in parts of the UK were evacuated today after receiving hoax bomb threats in a suspicious email as headteachers activated ’emergency protocols’.
Pupils at some schools in parts Scotland including Glasgow, Edinburgh, Fife and the Highlands as well as in Northern Ireland were sent home for the day.
Detectives have confirmed the messages were investigated and do not ‘represent a credible threat’ and advised staff that there was no need to close.
But officers were seen outside schools in some locations, while at others pupils were huddled under foil blankets to keep warm as temperatures plunged this morning.
Hundreds of schools are understood to have received a threatening email about a ‘device’, after the message was sent to distribution lists across the UK.
Some headteachers who decided to close urged parents not to pick up their children, as they instead tried to organise emergency transport to get them home.
It comes after another nationwide bomb threat hit schools in Scotland last month, when they received other malicious emails which were also identified as hoaxes.
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: ‘On Wednesday, November 11, threatening messages were sent to a number of schools in Scotland and across the UK.
Pupils huddle under foil blankets to keep warm after a school in Scotland is evacuated today
‘These messages were immediately assessed and are being treated as hoaxes. Our enquiries have established that there is nothing to suggest that they represent a credible threat or that there is any wider threat to the public.
‘We understand how distressing messages of this nature can be for pupils, parents, carers and school staff, and the concern they can understandably cause.
‘Our advice is that there is no requirement to evacuate schools or keep children away from education based solely on the content of the emails.
‘They have been sent widely to distribution lists across the UK and Northern Ireland and our assessment remains that they do not represent a credible threat.
‘Police Scotland’s Cyber and Fraud Unit is carrying out extensive enquiries to establish the source of the messages, and officers continue to liaise with law enforcement partners across the UK and internationally.’
A Police Service of Northern Ireland spokesman said: ‘Police received reports today of a concerning email sent to a number of schools across Northern Ireland.
‘As a result of this email, police are conducting urgent enquiries, and liaising with the schools in question. An update will be provided in due course.’
John McGhee, executive director of Education at Glasgow City Council, said: ‘You may be aware of media reports this morning about a threatening email about a device in schools that has been sent to schools across the country – our police colleagues have confirmed this is a hoax and that schools should not be evacuated.
‘Police officers will investigate the source of these emails We will continue to work closely with our police colleagues as part of the investigation.’
Fife Council’s service manager Kevin Funnell said: ‘We are aware that a number of schools received an email containing a bomb threat this morning.
‘As a precaution, schools have followed established procedures and Police Scotland has been informed. At this stage there is no information to suggest there is a credible threat.
‘The safety and wellbeing of pupils, staff and visitors remains our priority. We are working closely with Police Scotland and will continue to keep schools updated as further information becomes available.’
And a Highland Council spokesman said: ‘We are aware that this morning a threatening email was sent to schools across Highland and elsewhere.
‘As a precaution, some schools have made the decision to activate their emergency protocols and we are awaiting further guidance from Police Scotland.’
