A teacher has called for markings to be repainted outside a school after fire crews had to fight traffic when an alarm sounded.

Firefighters from Medway were called to Twydall Junior School in Romany Road, after fire alarms were set off.

The school has a Keep Clear sign and double yellow lines painted outside.

But when they arrived, the crews were faced with parents parked in the road waiting for their children and had difficulty getting through to the school.

Parking

Viginia Wilson, acting head teacher of the school, said they had been asking Medway Council to repaint their yellow, hatched to dissuade cars from parking immediately outside the school.

She said: “This was just before 3pm and the road is small and it can get very congested. It’s always an issue because we have two schools (St Thomas of Canterbury Catholic Primary) opposite one another

“The parents were not doing it deliberately but it was very difficult for the fire brigade to get through.”

Although the warning was a false alarm, Mrs Wilson said the lines may help keep access to the school clear.

She also denied rumours that some parents had refused to make way for the fire engine.

A council spokesman said it had been asked to repaint the lines and the work was on their schedule, but recent bad weather had meant contractors could not start the work.

They added: “As soon as temperatures rise and we have drier weather, our contractors will be completing this work, otherwise the paint will simply come off as soon as it is applied to the road.

“Medway Council works hard to encourage parents to use alternative methods of transport when taking their children to and from school, including the Walking Bus scheme and public transport. This not only reduces congestion, but also minimises the risk of incidents outside school by removing the number of unnecessary vehicles.”

A spokesman for Kent Fire and Rescue Service said: “In the interests of general public safety we would always encourage drivers to park in a manner that allows access for any emergency vehicle to reach the scene of an incident.”