A teenage boy has been arrested on suspicion of making a bomb threat that caused Newham Sixth Form College (NewVIc) to be evacuated during the exam season.

Staff and students were ordered to evacuate the Plaistow sixth form college as police were called to the scene yesterday at 9.22am.

The college, home to 2,500 full-time students, later tweeted: “Attention – college is closed for the rest of the day. Please keep checking Twitter and Facebook for updates.”

Angry students, who were in the middle of their exams, took to Twitter to vent their frustration. Some suggested that the hoax had been carried out by a student who was unprepared for their exam.

Mahzabin wrote: “So apparently someone anonymously emailed in Newvic College sayin tht they’re gnna bomb the college just so they dntt have to do their exam.”

Shabnaz wrote: “Only in newvic students get evacuated cos of a bomb threat.”

The teenage boy remains in custody at at an east London police station.

A Met Police spokeswoman said: “Police were called at 9.22am yesterday to a sixth form college in Newham following reports of a bomb threat.

“A teenage male has been arrested on suspicion of making a bomb threat. Officers from Newham are investigating and enquiries continue.”

A spokeswoman for the college NewVIc campus said: “The NewVIc campus was closed for part of the day yesterday on police advice and this resulted in disruption to public examinations.

“As soon as the college was able to reopen, we ensured that afternoon exams went ahead and we made every effort to inform examination candidates of this.

“We are in communication with the awarding bodies regarding the impact on candidates. We are very proud of the way our students responded to this situation with maturity and patience.

“The college is open as normal today for classes and examinations.”