A primary school is asking parents to 'do their bit' by keeping to the rules following a virus outbreak in a nearby high school school.

Headteacher of St Oswald's Primary School in Accrington, Mrs Cath Kippax, is asking parents and children to not mix with households indoors and give 'serious' consideration to mixing outdoors in a bid to keep the school open following an influx of cases at Mount Carmel High School.

Mrs Kippax said: "Please can children and parents in the community continue to follow the government guidelines and NOT mix households indoors, and give serious consideration about mixing outdoors at this time."

As many as 50 pupils and staff have contracted the virus at Mount Carmel with years 7, 8 and 9 all back to remote learning for several days because of the outbreak.

She said: "In school we are meticulous with keeping bubbles apart, washing and sanitising hands throughout the day, having separate resources for each child, having separate play equipment for play-times, disinfecting tables throughout the day whilst children are outside, disinfecting the toilets hourly.

"We desperately want the children to be back together on the playground and in the hall for assemblies, but until the rates drop and restrictions ease, we carry on keeping your children as safe as we can.

"Please do your bit at home and keep to the rules so that we can all return to normality very soon."

The same message has also been posted on a separate school's social media by headteacher Mrs Wolstenholme of St Mary’s RC Primary School in Oswaldtwistle, a feeder school for Mount Carmel.