Hunslet Carr Primary: Leeds school issues 'stranger danger' warning after man attempts to 'force' child into his car

In a statement issued to parents online, Mr Martin Lumb headteacher of Hunslet Carr Primary School issued the warning following an incident this morning.

It read: “On the way to school, one of the girls in Year 6 was approached by a man who tried to force her into his car. The car was running and a driver was waiting to drive the car away.

“The Year 6 child ran to the safety of a couple of parents who were arriving at school and the two men drove away.”

West Yorkshire Police say they are aware of the incidents and are investigating, issuing a description of the man as “being mixed race, with black hair and a black beard.”

Mr Lumb explains: “Incidents like this are very rare. I have worked at the school since 2010 and this is the first incident like this.

"I have visited all of the classrooms this morning to talk to the children about Stranger Danger so they may discuss this with you when they get home or over the weekend.”

In a statement provided to the YEP, West Yorkshire Police said: "At 8.45am today, police received a report of an 11-year-old girl having been approached by a man who got out of a car near to the junction of Sandon Mount and Sandon View in Hunslet.

“The incident occurred at about 8.40am. The girl ran off and alerted nearby adults and the man left the scene in a black car. He was described as being mixed race, with black hair and a black beard.”

Anyone with any information is asked to contact officers via 101 quoting log 354 of February 3 or online at www.westyorkshire.police.uk/101livechat.

Detective Inspector Mark Tester, of Leeds District Safeguarding Unit, said: “We are carrying out enquiries to establish the full circumstances of this incident and would like to hear from anyone who witnessed it or saw a man matching the description in the area.

“We appreciate that an incident of this nature will cause understandable concern in the community, and we are working closely with our colleagues on the local neighbourhood policing team who are maintaining an increased presence in the area to reassure people.”

Police note that they received reports of a similar incident in the Seacroft area this morning, but this has now been confirmed as a false report following enquiries.