A woman and 7-year-old girl have been injured in a knife attack at a primary school in southwestern Germany.

Police said on Friday that a man had fled after apparently stabbing people at a school in Esslingen, near Stuttgart, at around 8 am CET.

The girl and the woman — a 61-year-old supervisor — were taken to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.

The school was closed at the time, but some children were being looked after there during the regional holidays.

Police said in a statement that officers were looking for a suspect, who was described as being in his early 30s

Investigators also are gathering information about the circumstances surrounding the attack, including possible links between the attacker and his victims.

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In a separate incident on Friday, police in the western city of Hamm said a man with a knife had injured “several people” at the University of Hamm-Lippstadt.

In a statement on Twitter, police said a suspect had been detained.

According to the regional broadcaster WDR, a young man from the city had attacked several students, injuring three women and one man.

"We are on the spot with large police forces and ask you to avoid this area," the police added on Twitter.