At around 1.35pm, it was reported a man standing close to the Kuumba Imani millennium centre on Princes Road shot a firearm down Upper Stanhope Street.

Damage was found to the window of a parked BMW car consistent with a firearms discharge.

The offender, who was wearing black clothing, is believed to have ran from the scene on foot.

There are no reports of any injuries following the incident.

Detectives and community officers are in attendance carrying out house-to-house, forensic and witness enquiries, and providing reassurance to the community. CCTV opportunities are also being explored.

Detective Inspector Phil Mahon said: "The investigation into this incident is at a very early stage and we are keen to speak to anyone who may have any information.

"This was an extremely reckless act, carried out in the middle of the day close to a busy road, and it is only thanks to sheer good fortune that nobody was injured.

"Criminals prepared to use firearms to settle their disputes on our streets have no regard whatsoever for the safety of our communities and we will leave no stone unturned in our efforts to bring those responsible to justice.

"We will put significant resources into finding out exactly what happened, and identifying those responsible.

"Princes Road is a busy road and we would like anyone who happened to be driving past at around 1.35pm and believes they saw anything suspicious to come forward. If you have dashcam footage, we would appeal to you to submit it as it may have captured crucial evidence.

"If you are member of the Toxteth community and have heard any information about this shooting, however small it may seem, we want to hear from you.

"You can speak to us directly or anonymously and for free via Crimestoppers, which I want to remind people is completely independent of the police."

You can contact us by messaging our social media desk @MerPolCC, call 101 with reference 19100053626 or @CrimestoppersUK anonymously on 0800 555 111.