An oil spill from a school has prompted a major health and safety investigation.

Heating oil seeped from a cracked pipe under Hove Park School in Nevill Road, Hove, and into the ground just 600m from a drinking water supply borehole.

The Environment Agency (EA) and Southern Water were concerned it might pose a serious risk to water going into nearby homes.

EA officers and Southern Water engineers met at the scene yesterday but were still unsure how much oil had been spilt.

Southern Water reduced local abstraction of water to a minimum and was satisfied there was no risk to health.

A spokeswoman said: "Our role was simply to ensure there was no effect on our water supplies, which was the case."

Chris Wick, of the EA's Sussex environment management team, said: "Because we were alerted promptly, agency officers were able to limit any damage to the environment."

He said anyone storing oil should check their storage tanks regularly or contact the EA for advice on storage regulations.

An EA spokeswoman said investigations into the cause of the spillage were ongoing.

She said rather than running into the drinking water borehole, the oil seemed to have been contained within a clay layer on the soil surface.

She said: "Because there is a drinking water supply nearby we cannot be flippant but at the moment the risk is considered to be as minimal as you can get."

EA officers were expected to return to Nevill Road today.

No one at the school was available to comment about the spillage.

A Brighton and Hove City Council spokesman said the day-to-day running of the school had not been affected.

He said: "A crack has been found in an underground pipe. The oil is not thought to have leaked very far.

"The school, the council and the Environment Agency are working together to deal with this."