Toronto Private School canceled classes for the rest of the year after receiving an anonymous email and a phone threat earlier this week.

The incident occurred at Branksome Hall just before 7:30 a.m. on Monday and briefly led to the school being placed on lockdown. At that time, the police said the lockdown was implemented "out of an abundance of caution." The school was reopened shortly after the police determined that there was "no direct threat" to students and staff.

However, students were sent home for the rest of the day.

On Monday evening, Branksome Hall sent a letter home to parents informing them of the cancellation of classes for the remainder of the school year. The last scheduled day of classes for the 2021-2022 school year at the school is Tuesday, June 14.

In a statement provided to CP24, the school's spokeswoman Lisa Stevenson said they decided to end the school year early after a careful risk assessment and said, "The safety of our community and students is the most important."

She added, "We are grateful to our staff who stepped in to calm students and support each other and quickly and efficiently participated in our lockdown protocols, as well as the Toronto Police Services for their guidance and response. We also thank our students and parents for their patience, cooperation, and shared messages of support and understanding."

"We have made the necessary arrangements for exams and are working with our parent and staff community to find creative ways to conclude the year and celebrate our students' achievements."

Branksome Hall held an in-school graduation ceremony in May for 12th-grade students. The school said end-of-year celebrations for students in grades six through eleven will be "mostly virtual" this week.

Edited by: Dima Abu Khair