Youngsters took a trip to Ilkley fire station this week to thank the firefighters who battled to save their classroom from a blaze.

Pupils from Ben Rhydding Primary School, Bolling Road, designed a special thank-you card for the fire team, who attended a blaze at the school last Monday.

The youngsters were given a guided tour by part-time firefighters at Ilkley Fire Station on Tuesday and were able to meet some of the faces which helped to save their annex building.

Ilkley Fire Station Officer Alex Watson, who attended the fire, said: "The children asked if they could come to the station after the fire to find out what had happened.

"We gave them a brief description of how we dealt with the fire and we talked about fire safety and the home.

"Education is the way to stopping people having fires in their homes and we tell them how to deal with fires should one occur and the importance of fitting a smoke alarm."

The children were then shown a fire safety video and were able to sit in the fire engine.

The 30 children from the reception class are presently homeless after the fire destroyed the boiler in their classroom and caused smoke damage.

The classroom will be out of order for the next two weeks whilst repairs are made to the room. The children are taking lessons in the school hall, but were given three days off following the fire.

The classroom, which caught fire due to an electrical fault, was only a temporary measure until the extension on the school is complete.

Fire crews from Ilkley, Otley and Keighley attended the blaze and four firemen had to enter the building using breathing apparatus, but no one was injured.

An Ilkley fireman is appealing for people to fulfil their childhood dreams and help the community by becoming fire fighters. The retained fire station at Ilkley needs three or four new recruits to join its 11-strong team of part-time fire fighters.

Station officer Watson said: "We are looking for the fire station to be staffed by either people who live or work in the community. They would not be on call 24 hours and there is no age limit on people wanting to join.

"We are looking for people who would work in a team, they will receive training in the various aspects of work as a fire fighter and they will receive payment for their work."

The station presently has firemen from all walks of life from postmen and construction workers to managers.

The role of a part-time fire fighter is an important one with last week's fire at the Ben Rhydding school being just one example.

Anyone can apply but applicants must be over 18 years of age and should contact (01274) 682311 or they can speak to Alex Watson on (01943) 607970.