Man tries to use Pokemon cards to lure away Upper Hutt schoolboy

Police have increased their patrols around Upper Hutt schools following reports of men trying to lure children away - with one man offering Pokemon cards to have a child follow him.

Another incident involved a man approaching a child and saying his mother had sent him to pick the boy up, but the man disappeared when another adult walked past.

No children have been harmed but police are seeking information on the two incidents, which happened in Trentham and Elderslea.

Trentham School principal Suzanne Su'a said one of the incidents happened "around the corner" from her school on November 29.

An 8-year-old student was about to be picked up for after-school care, when a man he could only describe as "brown-skinned" approached him.

"He was heading in that direction and a man approached him ... and said to him, he had those Pokemon cards, he would give him some Pokemon cards if he came with him," Su'a said.

"At that point the boy said 'No, I don't want them thank you.' The man just left."

Su'a said the school was informing parents of the situation and reminding children about "stranger danger" and what to do in similar situations.

The other incident happened outside Maidstone Intermediate in Elderslea on November 25.

"It was a very wet, stormy afternoon. We had a young boy waiting for his mum outside school and she was late," principal Mary O'Regan said.

The 12-year-old, who is a "very good, reliable boy" told police a man came up to him from a side street across the road and said the boy's mother had told him to pick him up.

The boy did not have an opportunity to respond before the man fled the scene.

"Another adult walked down the footpath in front of the school ... when this person walked past the man walked away and walked down the side street."

The man was wearing a hoodie and a cap.

The boy's mother arrived shortly after and the boy told her what had happened, and the pair immediately went to the police station, O'Regan said.

"It's very alarming," she said.

"All our teachers have spoken to their classes. We've got a list from the Keeping Ourselves Safe programme, there's a list of strategies for kids to do when the feel unsafe."

The school also sent out an email to all parents advising them of the incident and reminding them to talk to their children about safety.

"We now don't allow students to wait out there. When the duty teachers come off, [students] that are left there come back into the foyer.

"It's sad, really, isn't it? And look, it's sort of 95 per cent safe. It's that other little per cent that you worry about."

Police had been "really, really supportive" and had been good at providing a presence outside the school, she said.

A police spokesperson said they could not confirm if the two incidents were linked.

"As no one has not been apprehended, police are not in a position to link the two instances and it's possible the two are unrelated," they said.

"Inquiries are continuing and police have increased patrols in this area particularly around school start and finish times.

"We encourage members of the public to contact police immediately on 111 if they identify any suspicious person interacting with children and young people either before or after school."

If anyone has any further information in relation to the above incidents, they can contact Senior Constable Kerry Fenton at Upper Hutt Police Station on 04 527 2300.

Last month an 11-year-old boy was abducted from a train station in Auckland and sexually assaulted before being dropped near his home four hours later. Two Auckland schoolgirls have also reported having to flee from potential abductors.