A mother has expressed her shock after her five-year-old daughter managed to leave her school and walk more than half a mile to the supermarket where she works in Batley, West Yorkshire.
Talor Hartshorne was on shift at a B&M store on Tuesday, February 15, when she turned around and saw her daughter, Maisie Glynn, standing next to her. Maisie, who is in year one, had left the school grounds during the lunch break and made her way to her mother's workplace.
Fortunately, Maisie was unhurt, but Ms Hartshorne said the incident could have been much worse. She has since withdrawn her daughter from Batley Parish Junior, Infant and Nursery School, stating she no longer trusts the school to ensure her child's safety.
Ms Hartshorne said: 'She was in the school playing and having her lunch, then managed to leave the school grounds and head into Batley without any of the teachers realising she was missing. I was at work at the supermarket and turned round and my daughter was there. It was very lucky that I was in a place that she has visited before. It could have been a very different situation. It's a very busy town.'
Philip Sunter, headteacher at the school, confirmed that an investigation has been launched into the incident. He said: 'The safety of all of our pupils is always our number one priority and we are thoroughly investigating how this was able to happen. We offer our deepest apologies to the parents of this pupil. I would like to reassure all parents that this is an isolated incident and something we are taking incredibly seriously.'
