NZ school bomb scare: No real threat, overseas calls

The New Zealand Police have confirmed the calls that triggered several evacuations of schools around the country came from overseas and that there were no actual threats to the schools involved.

Last week several schools were evacuated following bomb threats. Police said a threatening pre-recorded message of a "concerning nature" had been phoned in to a number of schools.

Schools affected on Thursday included Tahatai Coast School in Tauranga, Berkley Normal Middle School in Hamilton, Papakura High School in Auckland and Dunedin's Logan Park High School.

The Police said further investigation found the calls has originated from overseas.

"We understand the fear and concern that these types of events will cause, however we reiterate that we have not established any actual threat to the schools who received calls," the Police said in a statement.

"The safety of students, teachers and schools are our priority.

The organisation says how a school responds to these calls is a matter for the schools management in conjunction with Police.

"Schools will respond according to their individual circumstances and the information available to them," it says.

The Police says it will continue to work with the schools and the Ministry of Education, where appropriate, to respond to the events.