PUPILS at a school ravaged by flash floods returned to class to discover parts of the building would remain out of bounds for the rest of the year.

Northern Primary, Bacup, is counting the cost of freak weather which lashed East Lancashire on Friday.

Pupils returned to school after two impromptu days holiday but Angela Dugdale's reception class of 24 three and four-year-olds are being housed in the hall.

Headteacher Tracey Jackson praised the quick action of caretaker June Guy who spotted the water flooding into the school on Burnley Road and immediately called for help.

She said: "The water came off the school field which was already saturated and poured into the school.

"The reception classroom, which is in the lower ground floor, was under a foot of water when I arrived and the caretaker, her husband, the chairman of governors Nick Stratton and his father-in-law were all trying to sweep out the water.

"It also flooded the dining room, kitchen and boiler house."

But the rainwater was the least of the school's problems.

The sewerage system then backed up and overflowed, ruining furniture and carpets.

The school, which has 192 pupils, had to close for two days while industrial cleaners threw out everything from the reception area.

Mrs Jackson said: "It rained heavily for only 40 minutes or so but it came down so quickly that the playing fields could not drain and the resultant flooding caused terrible damage.

"When I arrived it looked like a waterfall cascading through the building's doors and windows.

"Mrs Dugdale is devastated. The furniture in the reception area can be replaced but the work of the children can't.

"We are waiting to see if the wooden floor in the room will dry out and that could take a couple of weeks. If it doesn't we may have to replace it, but we will recover."

The floor in the school is as old as the building, which is more than 100 years old.

Mrs Jackson could not say whether the reception area would be in use before the end of the school year in four-and-a-half weeks, but the area would definitely be 'rebuilt' by September.