Police are investigating the sudden death of a teen schoolboy in Stockton.
The student, who was in Year 11 at Ian Ramsey CE Academy in Fairfield, sadly died on July 10, prompting a flurry of tributes across social media.
Cleveland Police is treating the death as "unexplained" and is working closely with the Coroner to establish the cause of his death.
The school, which is run by the Northern Lights Learning Trust, said it was "deeply saddened" to hear of the death and had engaged specially trained counsellors to support pupils and staff.
A spokesperson for the trust said: "Northern Lights Learning Trust and Ian Ramsey CE Academy are deeply saddened to hear of the death of one of our Year 11 pupils.
"Our thoughts and prayers are with his family, friends and staff at this difficult time.
"The school has engaged specially trained counsellors and local clergy to support our pupils and staff and a dedicated space is available to allow them to grieve and remember their friend and peer."
A force spokesperson said: "Cleveland Police are investigating the circumstances around the sudden death of a 16-year-old boy in Stockton which happened on Wednesday 10th July.
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"The death is currently being treated as ‘unexplained’ and officers are working closely with the Coroner to establish the cause of his death.
"Our thoughts remain with the boy’s family and friends at this extremely difficult time.
"Police would ask people to avoid social media speculation which may cause distress to the family and hinder the ongoing investigation."
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