GALLERY: Edward Bryant Primary School pupils take part in evacuation

The group of Year 4 youngsters were taken to Bognor Regis railway station where parents waved them off on their journey.

But unlike children during the early 1940s, the pupils were not being sent away to the provinces, but on an educational trip to Arundel.

Barry Robinson, who co-organised the history event with fellow teacher Laura House, felt pupils had learnt a great deal from the experience.

He said: "We did this as part of the curriculum to show how the second world war affected children and thought we would try a new approach.

"Quite a few of the parents dressed up in wartime clothing as we marched the children off to the station '“ some of the parents actually seemed quite emotional.

"When we arrived at Arundel we were met by military police and were then taken to a hall where the children did a range of activities including darning clothes and tried some games and food from the 1940s.

"Some of the children were a bit nervous and because they are only eight we don't teach them too much about the actual war '“ which is taught in secondary school.

"But they all really enjoyed it, though couldn't quite believe that children during the war actually had to go away from their families for months and sometimes years."

Mr Bryant added they would be following up their studies with a visit to Tangmere airfield to discover what Bognor Regis was like during the blitz.

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