FOUR schools in Worcestershire were evacuated after an email was sent out warning pupils would be harmed as they left school in the afternoon.

Parents were asked to pick up students early from Red Hill Primary School, in Worcester, while three schools in Evesham also received the email.

One - St Richard's CE First School - was also evacuated while parents were offered the chance to collect students from Blackminster Middle School if they were alarmed.

Pebworth First School in Stratford-upon-Avon, near Evesham, also received the email.

The threat - described by police as 'not credible' - was part of a wider series of emails sent to schools across the country.

The email contained a threat to harm children by knocking them over or shooting them.

Parents at Red Hill Primary School, in Midhurst Close, were asked to collect their children at 1.30pm and told this was due to a security issue, although parents were not given any further details.

A spokesman for West Mercia Police said: "Police received a number of reports of malicious hoax communications made to educational establishments and schools in the West Mercia policing area.

"Investigations are ongoing and at this stage, we do not believe there to be a credible threat.

"We take hoaxes extremely seriously. They divert limited police resources and cause disruption and alarm to the public.

"We are committed to identifying those responsible for such actions and bringing them to justice."

The email sent to schools read: “You have a choice here, you can ignore this email and risk the lives of the students you say you care for or you can listen to what we are telling you.

“The only way out is to go out with a bang.

“A car will drive into as many students as possible as they try to leave.

“If you try and evacuate then the driver will get out and shoot any student leaving.”

On our Facebook page, parents praised staff at Red Hill Primary.

Kerrie McDonald said: “Red Hill did an amazing job at getting the kids out.

“Stress free and my children are none the wiser to the situation.”

Hazel Moore said: “At least we were able to get our children home safely, next time it might not be a hoax.”

This is the second time that schools have been targeted with a threatening email. Just over a week ago, a similar malicious email was sent to 400 schools in the country.

On that occasion, Newbridge Short Stay School, in Midland Road and Nunnery Wood Primary School in Prestwich Avenue, were targeted.

A spokesman for Worcestershire County Council said: “A number of schools in Worcestershire received hoax threats by email but we won't be commenting further or confirming individual schools targeted.”

Anyone with information about the emails or any of the other incidents should call police on 101.

Alternatively, information can be provided anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or via crimestoppers-uk.org.