An illness 'outbreak' in a school led to children 'vomiting on each other', angry parents have claimed.

According to several parents, the sickness swept through Telscombe Cliffs Academy in Telscombe Cliffs, Peacehaven - with children covered in sick and whole classes affected.

The school said its pupils' health was of the 'utmost importance' and had encouraged staff and children to wash their hands thoroughly among other preventative measures.

But parents have criticised the school's response, saying there had been a lack of communication and that classrooms or the school itself should have been shut for deep cleaning.

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One furious parent, who did not wish to be named, told The Argus 'children are vomiting in classrooms, vomiting on others and being left with sick bowls'.

She added: "Despite this school has still not been closed for deep cleaning.

“This is a serious outbreak and there has been no communication from the school.

“We contacted the council, and they said that the matter was out of their hands.”

Parents told The Argus that they believed it was a norovirus outbreak while the Academy described it as a 'seasonal illness'.

Another parent said that a class of 28 children had all taken ill.

They said: “There must be hundreds that have gone down with the norovirus in the last week.

“The school haven't notified parents; they haven't shut classrooms, and they haven't improved any cleaning.

“In my daughter’s class all except four caught the bug.

“Kids threw up on others in class and only the ones actively vomiting were sent home; the ones covered in sick were told to clean themselves up, they are only six year olds.

“Kids have been throwing up in assembly, the same hall where they all eat.

"I think it's disgusting that parents haven't been made aware and that the school hasn't closed for a deep clean!

“I have a one-year-old baby and another child that is 11, I can’t risk them getting ill too.”

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A spokesperson for the Academy said: “The health, safety and wellbeing of our pupils and staff is of the utmost importance, and we take any illness very seriously.

“As with schools across the country at this time of year, members of our community may experience seasonal illnesses.

“To prevent and manage these occurrences we are taking the appropriate preventative measures in line with national guidelines to ensure our school site remains a safe and productive learning environment for all.

“These include encouraging all pupils and staff to regularly wash their hands, ensuring touch points are cleaned frequently and asking families to follow NHS guidelines regarding attendance."