An HGV has crashed through school gates and across the field into a tree this afternoon.

It happened at Northfleet Technology College at about 3.45pm - shortly after children were leaving the Colyer Road school.

Pupil Connor Furlong, 11, was among those who saw it happen.

He said: "I was in my back garden having just got back from school and I saw the shadow of the lorry coming down the hill pretty fast.

"As soon as all the police cars came down, everyone was looking out of the windows and we saw the lorry had crashed through the gates and into a tree."

Justin Beadle works opposite the school and ran out and leapt into the cab to put the handbrake on.

He said: "I was up there working and someone said this lorry had rolled into the school. I was like, really? I bunked up into the cab and turned the ignition off and put the handbrake on.

"They're all lucky really, if this had been 20 minutes earlier, all the kids would have been coming out. It doesn't bear thinking about."

"They're all lucky really, if this had been 20 minutes earlier, all the kids would have been coming out. It doesn't bear thinking about" - Justin Beadle

Opposite the gates is a small road, slightly inclined.

Witnesses claim the lorry rolled down without a driver at the wheel before it ploughed into the school grounds.

Lois White said: "I was just going up Colyer Road and a lorry flew out in front of us. It shot out of the yard opposite the school gates and straight across the road.

"We thought the driver had had a heart attack but he'd left the cab. Everyone was so lucky."