A mother has praised the bravery of fire crews who saved eight children who had became stuck at the bottom of a cliff after a beck flooded.

The children, aged between five and 15, were playing in the beck in woodland near Loftus Bank at Loftus, east Cleveland, when it unexpectedly flooded at dusk on Sunday.

The area around it became muddy and slippery and the children were unable to climb up the bank to safety.

One of the boys had a mobile phone and called his parents for help, but they were unable to help the stranded children and called 999.

Firefighters from Loftus and Skelton were first on the scene shortly after 6pm and stayed with the children until crews with specialist equipment and training, from Coulby Newham fire station, arrived to rescue them.

They used ropes tied to trees to help the children back up the steep and muddy cliff.

A paramedic was on standby but none of the children were hurt.

Paula Garbutt, the mother of 10-year-old Jamie Lancaster and his 11-year-old brother Darrell Lancaster, said: "My partner and another parent went looking for the kids for an hour after they rang. But there's now way we could've got them out of the gully.

"We couldn't have saved the kids without the firefighters help. We'd like to thank them for what they did."

A spokesperson from Cleveland Firebrigade said: "It was very dark and the children must have been very cold and frightened.

"It could've been quite nasty because there are a lot of weather warnings at the moment.

"We would like to warn people that it might seem like a bright and sunny day, but conditions can deteriorate rapidly.

"It is great they had a mobile phone with them but people should not rely on them as they may not get a signal out in the countryside."

Headteacher David Parks, of Loftus Primary School, where Jamie Lancaster goes to school said: "Fortunately all the children are safe and its perhaps a lesson to be learnt by children.

"I'm sure the parents are all very grateful to the rescue services who deserve praise for potentially saving these children's lives."