A school has been left dangerously unstable after fire ripped through it in the early hours of this morning. The blaze was discovered at 1.15am on Saturday morning in the Humanities Block of St Peter's School in King Oswy Drive, Hartlepool.

Although the cause of the fire remains unknown, it is believed to have started in a ground floor classroom. Flames then spread to the classroom above causing what police described as "considerable fire and structural damage to the premises and smoke damage throughout."

Structural engineers are due to assess the building later today to determine the extent of the damage - although it appears the heat at the height of the fire may have been so intense as to cause extensive damage to the metal framework of the building.

However, a police spokesman said: "As a result of the heat, structural damage was caused to the steel skeleton causing the flooring of the first floor to drop slightly, leaving the property in a dangerous condition."

Police and fire investigation teams are likely to return to the scene this afternoon after engineers have examined the building.