Top News

A message to a school claiming "a bomb had been left" on the premises "is being treated as malicious" after students were evacuated as a precaution.

Winterbourne Academy in Bristol "invoked its evacuation procedure and directed students to the evacuation points" on Monday morning. Avon and Somerset Police said "there was no other information to support" the claim made in the message.

The school, sharing a message on social media, said they were "working closely with the police and following their guidance," and at around 10am also added the building was "confirmed as secure". The full message read: "The building has been confirmed as secure, and students are safely making their way back into the building under staff supervision. Everyone is well and remain supported."

Winterbourne Academy is part of the Olympus Academy Trust, which explained the "security threat" was received "before the school day had started and as students were arriving to school". "The school invoked its evacuation procedure and directed students to the evacuation points," the trust also said, adding that police were on site and all students and staff were safe."

A spokesperson for Avon and Somerset Police said: "At 8.13am today (26 January) we were made aware by staff at Winterbourne Academy that they had received a message over the weekend from an unknown person who claimed a bomb had been left somewhere on the school's grounds. There was no other information to support this claim.