A pupil, parent and staff delegation from Aldborough Primary will hand in a petition at County Hall today calling for the road outside their isolated north Norfolk school to be gritted during the winter.

They want Norfolk County Council to include the school area on its gritting route which currently ends about quarter to half-a mile away in the village centre, according to head teacher Tina Casburn.

With no pavement outside the school, children run the risk of being hurt in icy conditions by sliding cars dropping pupils off, said Mrs Casburn.

She added: 'We're in the sticks and our road is on a slight incline. The amount of ice on it can be quite horrendous. Parents go slip-sliding away in their cars.'

Mrs Casburn believes the gritting lorry could easily pass the school on its way out of Aldborough.

Petition organiser Becky Ballard, whose seven-year-old daughter Layla is a pupil at Aldborough, will accompany Mrs Casburn to County Hall, together with 10-year-old pupils Luca Wedge-Clarke and Mollie Burton who will be carrying a placard.

They will hand over the petition, signed by worried parents, to Ian Mackie, deputy leader of Norfolk County Council, and will also meet their county councillor, Diana Clarke, to discuss their concerns.

Mrs Ballard said she hoped the council would include the school on its gritting route list in time for the coming winter. She added: 'It's a nightmare situation and very dangerous.'