THE DRIZZLE ridden summer holidays will not have dampened the spirits of Mickley schoolchildren, as they were getting busy with knitting needles during the long holiday.

For the youngsters have been knitting and purling to create a special celebration of the Tour of Britain whizzing past their school next week.

Parents, teachers and members of the tight-knit community have also got involved to stitch miniature cycling jerseys in Northumberland’s red and yellow.

The jerseys will be strung together to form bunting, which will decorate the front of the school ready for stage five of the race which will set off from Prudhoe on Thursday.

School care manager Gill Grevett was inspired to get the community knitting after seeing the efforts of local residents during the Tour de Yorkshire. She was able to borrow the knitting patterns used, which she distributed about the village.

Headteacher Andy Hudson said: “We wanted to do something really special for the Tour of Britain. This is a great idea because it is something that children and the community can do together and it will look really individual.After the race we’re going to knit them together into a blanket.”

On the day of the race, the entire school will be gathered in front of the school to cheer as the cyclists whizz by.