Schools Across Scotland Evacuated After Widespread Hoax Bomb Threat Emails
Schools across Scotland were evacuated after threatening emails prompted precautionary responses, although police said the messages were hoaxes with no credible danger.
The emails were sent to schools on Wednesday, November 11, and contained threatening messages referring to bomb threats. The communications were distributed widely across Scotland and elsewhere in the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland, causing concern among school communities and prompting some establishments to activate their emergency procedures.
Police Scotland confirmed that the messages had been assessed shortly after they were reported. Officers said their enquiries had found no evidence that the threats represented a credible danger or indicated any wider risk to the public.
The force also advised that schools did not need to evacuate or keep children away from education solely because of the content of the emails. However, some schools had already taken precautionary action while seeking guidance and reassurance from police.
Areas reporting evacuations included Fife and Perth and Kinross, with disruption also reported in other parts of the country. The responses varied between local authorities and individual schools, depending on the circumstances and the decisions made by their management teams.
In Fife, the local authority confirmed that a number of schools had received emails containing bomb threats. Kevin Funnell, a service manager with the council, said schools had followed established procedures as a precaution and that police had been informed. He stressed that there was no information at that stage to suggest a credible threat.
Highland Council reported that 196 schools in the region had received the threatening email. The authority said most had reviewed their emergency arrangements, with the majority taking precautionary steps to evacuate while further information was sought from Police Scotland. Schools subsequently contacted parents about arrangements for the remainder of the day.
Some Highland schools were able to reopen after police confirmed the messages were being treated as hoaxes. Others remained closed because pupils had already been collected or returned home, making it difficult to resume normal operations. The council said the safety of children and young people remained its priority.
Lochaber High School in Fort William also issued an update to families. The school said it was monitoring the situation and did not intend to evacuate its premises. Parents and carers were informed that they could collect their children if they wished, while staff continued to assess developments and provide updates.
Police Scotland said around 1,000 schools had been contacted through distribution lists. The messages were not limited to one local authority area, and similar communications had been received elsewhere in the UK and Northern Ireland. The widespread distribution was a significant factor in the scale of the disruption and the concern experienced by pupils, parents and school staff.
The force's Cyber and Fraud Unit is conducting extensive enquiries to establish where the emails originated. Police are also working with law enforcement partners across the UK and internationally as investigators seek to identify those responsible for sending the messages.
Assistant Chief Constable Mark Sutherland said the communications contained bomb threats alongside threatening and disturbing language. He reiterated that police had assessed the messages as hoaxes and said there was no requirement for schools to evacuate or prevent pupils from attending education settings. He also urged the public not to become alarmed by the communications.
The latest incident follows a similar wave of threatening messages sent to Scottish schools on October 19. That earlier episode prompted more than 300 calls to Police Scotland and led to evacuations in some areas, including Edinburgh and Clackmannanshire. Officers also launched an investigation into the origin of those communications.
Police have not publicly confirmed whether the November incident is connected to the October threats. Assistant Chief Constable Sutherland said investigators were keeping an open mind about any possible link while both enquiries continued. Authorities are examining the available information and working with partner agencies to establish whether the same individuals or groups were involved.
The repeated targeting of education settings has raised concerns about the disruption caused to pupils, families and school staff, even when threats are assessed as non-credible. Emergency procedures are designed to protect people when information is uncertain, while police assessments help schools determine the appropriate response.
Parents and carers are being advised to follow updates issued directly by their children's schools and local authorities. Police Scotland continues to investigate the source of the emails and has reassured the public that its assessment remains that there is no credible threat or wider danger.
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