Parents fear for their children's safety after work to build a new supermarket access road started on a school site.

They are horrified that the scheme has already begun at Bradford's Thornbury Primary School, even though the pupils are not due to move out until next year at the earliest.

Their worries follow concerns that the replacement school in Lower Rushton Road is not suitable because they claim it is too small and there is not enough outside play space.

The new supermarket is being built by Bradford-based Morrisons next to the existing school in Leeds Old Road, and the access road is being built through Rushton Avenue. But part of it cuts through the school site, and trees and flowers planted by the children have already been pulled up.

Christine Watts said she is concerned for the safety of her two grandchildren during the construction and when the road is built.

She said: "It's a death trap. It seems business is coming before the safety of the children. It's very dangerous and I don't think it should be done while the school is open."

Her son Ian, 31, said he was shocked to find work had started when he took children Kirsty, five, and Sarah, ten, to school.

He said: "Eighty per cent of the parents don't know what's going on. It would have been nice to have a letter from the school or the education department."

Norin Begum, 28, of Laisterdyke, who has four children at the school aged from four to nine, said she was also concerned about children's safety once the road was constructed.

But head teacher Leo Connolly said parents whose children had to be moved from temporary classrooms on the land had been informed before Easter, and details of the planning application from Morrisons had always been available to the public.

"The safety of the pupils is our foremost concern and I do monitor it. I have spoken with the contractor's representative on two or three occasions this week to pick up on concerns," he said.

Amjid Khan, vice-chairman of the school's governing body, said: "It's a danger to the children, parents have raised concerns.

"We also have concerns with the plan for the school's new building. We are under pressure to sign the plans but as yet we haven't, and we have the backing of the head teacher in that. We can't sign them if the parents are not happy, and the plans don't meet the needs of the community."

A Bradford Council spokesman said Morrisons had bought the land from the Council because, as part of the planning consent, it has to improve access to the Rushton Avenue/Leeds Old Road junction. The construction site was also cordoned off by a two metre high metal fence.

"As a condition of their contract, the contractor for Morrisons is required to liaise closely with the school. The head teacher has a range of telephone numbers he can contact if he has any concerns about the development," said the spokesman.

A Morrisons spokesman confirmed the work had started to build a new junction.