'We don't want to die': Parents' fury as police use school bus filled with screaming children as roadblock to stop gypsy fair car chase

Appleby Primary School pupils 'cried and said they didn't want to die'



Police asked driver of 70-seat coach to block path of a car in Cumbria

Car had been heading for a road beyond the bus thronged with people at the Appleby Horse Fair



Terrified children as young as five cried ‘we don’t want to die’ as police used their school bus as a roadblock during a car chase.



Officers ahead of the pursuit asked the bus driver to position his vehicle, carrying about 50 youngsters, across the road as the cars approached.



Children were in tears as the car being chased rammed into the rear of the coach.



Miraculously, none was injured. But parents are furious their children were put in danger.

Collision: Parents were left furious after police asked the driver of the 70-seat coach to block the path of a car that had failed to stop in Battlebarrow, Cumbria, during the Appleby Horse Fair

The drama, in Appleby, Cumbria, is now under investigation by the local Police and Crime Commissioner.



His officers asked the driver of the 70-seat coach to block the path of a car that had failed to stop on its way to the Appleby Horse Fair.



It is understood the BMW slowed as it approached the bus and crashed into the rear as it tried to squeeze past.

Amanda Daldry, 43, said her daughters Holly, 15, and Jessica, 13, were on the bus, which was taking children home from primary and grammar schools.



She said: ‘The kids were filled with adrenaline with what had happened. Excited would be the wrong word. They were agitated. The older ones realised what was happening.

Scary: Mother Amanda Daldry, 43, of Sandford, Cumbria, is pictured with her two daughters Holly (right) and Jessica (left). Holly said the younger children on the bus 'started crying and thinking they were all going to die'

'Depending on which side of the bus they were on, some of them saw the car approaching.



'They should not have used a school bus. What would they have done if some of the kids were seriously hurt?’



'I don't want to die, I'm too young to die' What Sam White, 14, heard younger boys and girls saying

Her daughter Holly said: ‘At first I thought our driver was reversing to turn around but we were waiting for a few minutes and then there was this big thump.



‘We didn’t see the car coming because we were on the other side.



'The little kids started crying and thinking they were all going to die.’



Before the crash, children on board the bus saw officers speak to the driver, who then backed up across the width of the street.

Crash: David White, 47, pictured with his son Sam, 14, who was also on the bus at the time of the crash

The passengers said they were not told what was happening and were not allowed to leave the bus during the ordeal.



Sam White, 14, said: ‘I saw the car coming up and then the police car behind with blue lights on.’



He added that the young children were screaming: ‘I don’t want to die.’



Cumbria Police say the car was heading for a road beyond the bus which was thronged with spectators, horses and schoolchildren.



'The police should have anticipated that the car might not stop and should not have used a school bus as a barricade when there were children on board' Amanda Daldry, mother of pupils

A statement said: ‘This request was made by police and was not done to totally block the road but placed in a position for the driver to slow down.



'Room was left for him to drive past the rear of the bus.’



It is understood the driver of the car was not going to take part in the fair, which is popular with travelling families and is often dogged by fly-tipping and low-level crime.



Police met head teachers Rachel Pearson, of Appleby Primary School, and Andy Lund, of Appleby Grammar, this week.



Neither school would comment yesterday and the coach company, Grand Prix Coaches of Brough, has not issued a statement.

Big event: The Appleby Horse Fair took place last week in the small Cumbrian market town of Appleby

Police and Crime Commissioner Richard Rhodes said: ‘I met the parents of children involved in the incident and listened to their concerns.



'As a result my office will be conducting a review of the constabulary’s procedures and whether they worked within policy. I will report back in due course.’



It is the latest in a string of controversial incidents involving the Cumbria force, which recently arrested several of its own workers over whistleblowing claims.



It came under heavy criticism after civilian police workers were arrested over claims they had leaked details of Mr Rhodes’s expenses to the press.

