Three men held over attempted abduction of schoolgirl in Great Barr

One of them was a teacher at Perry Beeches School, who reported the Ford Transit had been 'cruising' the area on Wednesday. A second call was made by a witness who saw the van stop at a bus stop at the junction of Hamstead Road and Newton Road where a teenage girl was waiting.

She fled after the men approached her, and police today urged the girl, who is believed to be aged around 16 and wearing a blue uniform, to come forward.

Officers stopped the van, which was collecting scrap metal, as it travelled along Sterndale Road at 8.50am yesterday. They arrested the men, aged 22 to 41, and took them to a police station where they remain on suspicion of attempted abduction.

Det Insp Tom Chisholm, from the force criminal investigation department said: "This investigation is still very much in its early stages, we are speaking to witnesses and trying to identify the schoolgirl.

"It is apparent that the van was collecting scrap metal in the area but it is claimed that the occupants have been approaching young people and calling out to them – which can be frightening.

"We now need to establish the full circumstances and would appeal for anyone who can assist in identifying the schoolgirl to make contact with the police."

He urged parents and teachers to drive home the 'stranger danger' message to children.

"We treat any reports of this nature very seriously, though incidents of child abduction or attempted abduction are extremely rare," he said.

"It's important children are reminded about safety messages: never to get into strangers' cars and to always report suspicious behaviour so we can investigate."

Police have received reports of attempted abductions in Streetly and Great Barr near schools on Wednesday.

And on Monday a pupil from Great Barr School was approached by three men who asked her to get into their van. Six other incidents have been reported this year.

Witnesses, or anyone with information, are asked to call police on 101.