THE head teacher at Sherburn High School has praised fire fighters for saving her school after a fire broke out overnight.

Head Maria Williams and the senior leadership team as well as staff members who live locally joined fire crews in the early hours of the morning as the fire was contained. 

Mrs Williams said the gym and changing rooms have suffered the most damage, though the full extent of the damage is currently being assessed by the North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service along with North Yorkshire Police who are still on site.

Nobody has been injured, all students are safe and the damage has been solely to the fabric of the building.

She said: "The school’s senior leaders had informed parents through email and text by 5.30am that the school would be closed today.  They will keep students, parents and carers, staff and the community updated as the day progresses. 

"Senior leaders are working out of the school’s main reception as the rest of the school is currently closed.  They have asked that the school community stay away from the area in the interests of safety until further notice.

"We hope very much that we can get back into the school and that teaching and learning can continue for our students as soon as possible” said Mrs Williams. 

“It seems as if the main teaching areas have been saved but the investigation is still on going.  I cannot thank the fire service enough for working so hard through the night to save our school.

“As the teaching and administrative areas have been saved we believe no student work has been lost.  All public examinations have finished, as well as our celebration evenings and sports day and we can confirm that school trips that had been planned for the end of term, some of them overseas, will still go ahead.

“As years 11 and 13 have finished their exams, we had reduced numbers in school – Years 7-10 and Year 12, so we are hopeful that we can get back to teaching and learning as quickly as possible. 

"For the last three weeks of term Year 6 children from local primary schools come into Sherburn to get accustomed to life in secondary school.  We had 160 children enjoy their first day yesterday, but for the time being they will return to their primary schools.”

North Yorkshire County Council officers were also on site early this morning and once the school has been handed back to the council by fire and police services, the council’s property services will work with the school to get teaching and learning up and running as soon as possible and make an assessment of losses. 

County Councillor Patrick Mulligan, north Yorkshire’s Executive Member for Schools said: “We would like to thank all the emergency services for working so hard overnight to save Sherburn High School.  The school has an extremely dedicated senior leadership team and we will work with them to make sure that teaching and learning can start again as quickly as possible.  We must wait for the emergency services to complete their investigations but we are hopeful that the main areas of the school will be fit for the school to get back to business."