Community raises £5k for Northfield school as flooding leaves disabled children 'devastated'

Victoria School
-Credit: (Image: Reach Publishing Services Limited)


Kind-hearted members of the public have raised thousands for a special school that suffered "devastating" floods after heavy rain battered Birmingham. Victoria School on Bell Hill in Northfield was left extensively damaged and without a full energy supply when floodwaters raged through the site last week.

Pupils were told to stay at home on Friday, September 27, making it one of a number of schools forced to close due to extreme weather. As a clean-up operation began to repair waterlogged and dirty classrooms, half of the school was without electricity and working phone lines.

Victoria is a special council-run school for students between the ages of two to 19 who have learning difficulties and complex health care needs. Executive Headteacher Gary Coffey said bosses had been left with no option but to close until the middle of next week.

READ MORE: Six places where flood alerts remain after Midlands battered by heavy rain

Now, local residents have come together to raise more than £5,000 in a matter of days. Parent Liz Chambers, who has a daughter at the school, described it as a special place.

The mother said the flooding would cost thousands to repair. She urged people to donate if they could to help replace equipment needed for disabled children.

She said: “For so many children at Victoria, these really are the days of their lives. To wake up tomorrow and find out that their safe haven has been damaged to such an extent will be truly devastating.”

Victoria School and Specialist Arts College, Bell Hill, Northfield
Victoria School and Specialist Arts College, Bell Hill, Northfield -Credit:Google Images

A school statement had thanked people for their support, saying it was working hard to find a safe solution. But it said the site was “badly damaged” with a lot of dirt in the water.

“We have had to make the difficult decision to close to students on Monday September 30 and Tuesday October 1,” it read.

“We are meeting with different agencies on Monday morning to look at a recovery plan and we hope to be able to update you all on the next steps early next week. We are all so upset with the damage to the classrooms and the impact that the closure has on our students and families.”

It came after teachers at nearby St Laurence Church Infant School were forced to carry children through flood water to worried parents. Staff showed what they described as a "river" flowing through the playground after a fence was broken by the cascade of water.

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