A minibus carrying six special needs children on a school trip was clamped on a car park at a Bradford tourist spot.

Furious teachers from Haycliffe Special School in Great Horton had to pay £50 before the party of children with learning difficulties were allowed home.

The vehicle was wheel-clamped by Carstoppers for parking across two bays on a private car park in Haworth.

Teacher Jamie Darby has hit out at the firm for targeting a vehicle carrying

special needs children.

But Carstoppers boss Ted Evans said the rules were clearly advertised and the minibus should not have parked across two bays.

The incident, which happened on Friday afternoon, is the latest in a string of complaints about the Haworth firm, which was branded Britain's worst clamper two years ago.

Mr Darby said: "The car park was about ten per cent full.

"We paid for an hour's stay but we were only out of the bus for about ten minutes because it was so cold.

"But by the time we got back the minibus had been clamped.

"It had been clamped because we had parked across two spaces, but the reason we do this is because we like to give the children a lot of room when they are getting off so they do not hurt themselves or damage property."

The vehicle was carrying six children between the ages of 11 and 14, including several with autism.

Mr Darby said he was worried about the children's safety if they had remained stuck in the vehicle for a long period of time.

He said: "I was really surprised because we had children with special needs who we needed to get home. We were really angry and upset.

"They are a group of children who need to be told exactly what is going on all the time. If we can't explain what is happening then they become very frustrated.

"We tried to explain this to the clamper but he was just very aggressive. It doesn't look very good for Haworth as far as tourism goes; it is going to put people off."

But Mr Evans said that any vehicles which broke the rules would be clamped.

He said: "I understand their situation but they could have parked in a coach bay - a minibus wouldn't have fitted in a car space anyway. It doesn't matter if the car park was full or empty, you can't have different rules for peaks and troughs, the rules have to stick."

He said: "It is sad if this puts people off coming to Haworth but why should Haworth be penalised because this man can't read the signs properly."

Mike Hutchinson, the vice-chairman of Haworth Traders Association, said that while Carstoppers were acting withing their rights, clamping was affecting the village's tourist trade.

Bradford Council is currently spending £17,000 on improving its own car park in the village at Weavers Hill, creating 27 extra spaces and widening the access.