An 11-year-old boy who broke his hip when he fell off recently-installed monkey bars on his first day of secondary school has been diagnosed with a rare condition.

James Broderick had been at Turner Free School in Folkestone for just three hours when the accident happened at 11am during his morning break.

The monkey bars are part of new equipment installed over the summer. School bosses say "all risk assessments and safety checks" were carried out.

Teachers rushed to the Year 7 pupil's aid as his leg "flooded with pain". He was taken to a walk-in centre in the town before being transferred to the William Harvey Hospital in Ashford.

An x-ray showed James had shattered his right hip and he would need treatment at the Evelina Children's Hospital in London.

Further tests revealed the sporty youngster - who loves football, skateboarding and swimming - was suffering from a rare condition called slipped capital femoral epiphysis.

The condition has a 50% chance of resulting in avascular necrosis - which means his bone tissue is at risk of dying and he may need a hip replacement.

His mother, Eloise Morton, told KentOnline it is "awful" to see her little boy in "such horrendous pain".

"He was so excited for his first day and I couldn’t believe it when this happened," she said.

"It turns out he has got an underlying condition which had gone undetected until now.

"It means he requires a very intensive operation and further treatment.

"At some point his hip was going to break, but falling off the monkey bars at school pushed the process forward and made it worse.

"Apparently it is really rare and we didn't know.

"We thought maybe he just grazed his bone or pulled a muscle so I couldn't believe it."

Describing the fall, James says that at first he "didn't feel a thing" as he lay on the ground.

"I knew I couldn’t move and my leg just felt very numb," he said.

"Then after the teachers started to come to me, the leg started to flood with pain, then it just got really bad."

James had a seven-hour operation on Thursday but it is likely he will need many more as his condition is monitored.

He is waiting for the results of a scan which will confirm whether or not he will need a hip replacement.

Miss Morton, 41, added: "He has been doing physio since he had his surgery.

"Whether the bone has decayed or not is something that will become apparent over the next few weeks.

"Fingers crossed the worst doesn’t happen and he doesn’t have to have a hip replacement.

"If he does, because he is only a child, he will have to have another one as he grows.

"It's awful to see my little boy in such horrendous pain but he has been really brave and dealt with it so well."

Depending on the results of his scan, James is hoping he will be able to go home today (Wednesday) but he will need to rely on crutches through his recovery.

James is incredibly active but it is not yet clear how his injuries will impact him taking part in his favourite sports in the future.

Ever since James arrived in London, Miss Morton, a mother-of-nine and grandmother-of-five, has been at his bedside which has taken a toll on her financially.

With many more trips to London expected, she has started a GoFundMe page to help raise money for train tickets from Folkestone Central to Waterloo which could cost around £54 a time.

She added: "We are going to have to come here every two weeks for physio and scans because they are concerned the ball of the hip could possibly die.

"I have been here a week so it's also food, and I've had to buy James some clothes.

"Everything is very expensive when it's a cost you don’t expect.

"We have also got to fund the cost of a new bed for James because he will need a special mattress so it is comfortable for his hip."

A spokesperson for Turner Free School says staff were "immediately on hand" to give James first aid following his fall.

“Over the summer we had a new ‘trim trail’ installed so that pupils could enjoy a wider range of activities over break and lunchtime," they said.

"As always, all risk assessments and safety checks were carried out and the equipment is fully supervised by staff whenever children are using it.

"When James slipped off the monkey bars a member of our senior leadership team was immediately on hand and was able to give first aid straight away.

"James' tutor group have sent him get well soon cards, and we’re all really looking forward to welcoming him back into school.”