Police Scotland issue statement after threatening messages sent to schools

Police Scotland have issued a statement after a number of threatening messages were sent to schools on Wednesday morning. Police Scotland said that schools across Scotland the rest of the UK received the messages with the messages being immediately assessed and being treated as hoaxes. Enquiries have already been made by police into the incident and they say there is "nothing to suggest that they represent a credible threat or that there is any wider threat to the public."

In a statement Police Scotland said: "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." In a statement Dumfries and Galloway Council has said that they have been in dialogue with Police Scotland and that some schools in the region were evacuated as a precaution. Dumfries and Galloway Council said: "Earlier this morning, the large majority of our school settings in Dumfries and Galloway received a bomb/threat to life email.

Upon receiving this email, our Headteachers contacted Police Scotland and the central teams in Education and Resilience at Dumfries and Galloway Council. "Police Scotland have been in constant dialogue with our council and confirmed that threats were immediately assessed and that there is no immediate or targeted threat. They confirmed this message has been sent to multiple school settings across Scotland, and there is a national position in relation to no requirement for schools to evacuate.

"We know some schools in our region evacuated as a precaution. Each school community/setting is unique and as such has its own way of supporting and reassuring learners and staff. We also know that local police have attended some school settings in a community capacity to assist and reassure. "Parents and carers have been advised of this directly this morning. The safety and wellbeing of our children, young people and staff remains our highest priority.

We will continue to liaise closely with Police Scotland and will continue to be guided by them, whilst also being mindful that enquiries surrounding the emails are ongoing." Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To Know....