CHILDREN waiting to go into class found themselves at the centre of drama when a suspected gas leak was discovered.
Parents had to return to Diggle School on the morning of Tuesday, December 12 to collect pupils after the issue was found.
Firefighters scrambled to the Sam Road building and the road was closed while investigations by them and gas company Cadent took place.
They also had to move people away from the scene to Kilngreen Church until they gave the all clear.
Fortunately, everything was resolved later that day, in time for Diggle School’s Christmas music concert on Wednesday, December 13.
But the way the community responded as the school found itself at the centre of an incident delighted everyone associated with it, especially headteacher Sarah Newton.
Joanne Powell, of Diggle School, said: “It was prior to the children arriving in school, although they were outside waiting to come in.
“We had to evacuate the building and get parents who were there to take their children home.
“The way everybody reacted was amazing and Mrs Newton our headteacher was really proud.
“The children behaved amazingly maturely, the parents collected their children and were very understanding (a lot of parents offered to get the staff coffee and were concerned for our safety, which was lovely).
“We were able to shelter in Kilngreen Church, which was opened for us and the residents of Sam Road were very understanding that the road had been shut.
“Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue were brilliant, as were Cadent the gas people.
“It really was wonderful watching a lot of people (who had probably been quite inconvenienced) coming together to show such community spirit.
“At Diggle School we say we’re ’a community for your children’ and today we definitely were.”
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