Police are searching for a 16-year-old boy from Essex who is believed to have got into difficulty while swimming in a lake.

Cambridgeshire Police said it was called by the ambulance service at 5.26pm on Monday reporting concerns for a teenager in the water at Burnside Lakes in Cherry Hinton, just outside of Cambridge.

The force said emergency services and specialist teams attended but the boy has not been found.

A spokesman said: “It is believed the boy, who is 16 and from the Essex area, was swimming in the lake with a group of friends when he got into difficulty.

“Search teams remain at the lake to find the boy and we ask that members of the public stay away from the area while this work is carried out.”

The force said that the boy’s family are aware.