We would like to apologise for the disruption caused by the power failure in Hollinwood this morning that meant we had to close both New Bridge School and Hollinwood Academy.

We reported the fault to Electricity North West at 7am and initially hoped that the power would soon be restored. Unfortunately, however, the full extent of the problem became apparent later in the morning after the cause was traced to an area around Hollins Road.

Our young people coped brilliantly and were very patient while we contacted families and arranged for everyone to go home – a difficult process with our IT network, websites and phone system out of action.

We would like to thank all our young people, families and staff for rallying round and making sure everyone stayed safe. The power is now back on after being redirected from another area and both schools will be open as normal on Monday.