School hit by flooding shuts indefinitely as parents fundraise for repairs

Kilnhurst Primary School is next to the River Don which burst its banks when a month’s rain fell in 24 hours on Thursday.

Outdoor play equipment has been ruined, parents say, and major work is understood to be required to repair severe water damage inside.

The Friends of Kilnhurst Primary group has set up a crowdfunding appeal with a target of £3,000 to replace lost items at the school, which is attended by more than 200 pupils.

Group member Clare Gillott, whose eight-year-old daughter Saffron goes to the primary, said it had been ‘hit really badly’.

“Children are to be spread over local schools,” she said. “We are gutted but no more than our children - Saffron has cried most of the day about her work and not being able to go to school. As parents we’re doing the only thing we can and fundraising to replace equipment previously bought with fundraising money.”

She said families had been told by the headteacher that water ‘managed to get everywhere’.

“Meetings are taking place next week to see what settings in the area can help out as a temporary base for the children to continue their education. The head is awaiting the insurance company to visit to assess the damage before the clean-up can begin."

The flooding has caused chaos and tragedy in the North.

In Derbyshire a woman has been killed when she was swept away by the River Derwent in Matlock. In South Yorkshire railway lines and roads have been submerged, homes have been evacuated, schools were shut and shoppers were stranded in Meadowhall as the relentless rain came down.

Rotherham experienced problems in the Bridgegate area of the town centre, around the Parkgate retail centre, Catcliffe and Laughton Common, with flooding also reported at Whiston.

The River Don has hit its highest recorded level at just over 6.3 metres, higher than it was during the disastrous floods of 2007.

Today seven ‘danger to life’ warnings are in place on the Don in and around Doncaster at Barnby Dun; Fishlake; Bentley; Kirk Bramwith; Kirk Sandall; South Bramwith and Willow Bridge Caravan Site.

Visit www.crowdfunder.co.uk/replacing-school-equipment-from-the-floods for more information about the school’s appeal.