Hucknall parents on alert after reports of attempt to snatch children near town school

A frightened parent posted on social media that the incident happened near Holgate Academy on Wednesday, March 16.

She said: “Please be aware, there was a black car with two men grabbing children. They tried to grab my son and daughter this morning.

"Luckily, they escaped.”

Teachers at the school have reportedly been extra vigilant on gate duty as a result of the incident.

The reported incident will spark fears after similar incidents took place last summer when another Hucknall mother reported that a man had tried to grab her son as they walked along a road close to their home.

This then gave rise to a raft of further social media posts from people saying similar incidents had occurred in other parts of the town.

However, police at the time moved to quell any fears that children were not safe and people should not panic.

Inspector Jon Hewitt, of the Ashfield neighbourhood policing team, said: “We are investigating a report of a boy and girl being approached by a man in Wood Lane, Hucknall, at around 8.30am on Wednesday, March 16.

“We treat reports of this nature extremely seriously and have increased patrols in the area to provide reassurance.

“Thankfully the boy and girl were unharmed and we are working with the school to offer support to both pupils as we continue to work hard to understand the circumstances.

“Anyone with information that may assist the investigation is asked to call 101 quoting incident 186 of 16 March 2022.”