EAST Lancashire schoolgirl Helen Flanagan has thrust goths into the spotlight with her Coronation Street character Rosie Webster.

But teens thinking of copying the soap and 'going gothic' have been warned they will be sent home from school.

The storyline centres around 12-year-old Rosie, played by Bury-born actress Helen, who attends Westholme School, Blackburn.

She is one of two young characters who decided to go goth dressing in black, listening to heavy metal music and getting piercings which has shocked and amused parents in equal measure.

But headteachers in the region have warned any plans of turning telly into reality will result in youngsters being sent home from class.

Anthony McNamara, head at St Augustine's High School, Billington, said: "Our advice to pupils considering following suit would be to experiment during the summer holidays.

"The reason we have a school uniform is because it removes any danger of peer pressure to follow a trend or fashion, and although they may gripe about it the pupils do appreciate that.

"We have rules on extreme dying of hair, piercings and use of make-up, and pupils need to adhere to that or they will be sent home."

But he added: "We are not saying don't experiment, and I know pupils who have tried being gothic, but it isn't appropriate at school.

I was recently on a trip in Holland and we went to visit a school that had no dress code policy. The school was excellent but the fact they allowed skinheads with big boots to walk in to lessons did make me think how better it was to have a uniform policy."

Robin Campbell, head of Pleckgate High School, Blackburn, explained: "We have a strict uniform policy which we intend to stick to. Pupils know what is and isn't acceptable."

And Alasdair Coates, headteacher at St Christopher's C of E High, Accrington, said: "If pupils are inspired to go gothic after watching Coronation Street then they will be breaching school rules.

"We stipulate there should be no make-up, no hair dye and that girls can only have one gold stud in the lower ear lobe.

"We wouldn't suspend pupils but we would send them home to wash it out.

Effectively, they would be excluding themselves and I dont think students wouldn't do that."

Sending children home because of haircuts and other looks is nothing new in East Lancashire.

Several youngsters have fallen foul of dress codes by copying David Beckham's varied haircuts.

Westholme School declined to comment.