A PENARTH family had their “worst nightmare” come true when their daughter was hit by a car on a zebra crossing on the way to school.

Her parents are now appealing for a lollipop lady to be placed on the road to prevent any further accidents and have warned children to be careful when crossing the road.

Jade Morris, 12, was hit by the car on Redlands Road, opposite Ysgol Pen-y-Garth, when she was on her way to St Cyres School on Friday morning, January 10.

Year 8 pupil Jade suffered cuts and bruises, as well as a swollen elbow, and she missed two days of school with her arm in a sling.

Her parents, Amber and Tony Morris, said their daughter had a lucky escape and have warned children to be careful when crossing the road. They have also appealed for anybody that witnessed the incident to contact the police.

Her dad Tony, of Teasel Avenue, said: "She was halfway across the road when the car hit her.

"The driver stopped and at the time she thought she was okay, but by the time she got to school what happened to her sunk in .

“She had swelling on her elbow, and bruises and cuts to her back and her ankle.”

He added that the phone call from the school was his “worst nightmare” and that he drove straight there after they told him about the incident.

“As I was driving everything was going through my mind,” he said. “It was just sheer panic. I don't want to ever have that call again.”

He added that he was concerned other children could be involved in accidents on that road and appealed for the Vale Council to place a crossing patrol officer there.

“That crossing is in a dangerous position and we are more worried that it could be worse,” he said.

“I think there should be a lollipop lady on the crossing as they have got one by Cornerswell Road and by Cogan Primary School.

“Next time it may not be so straight forward.

“We would like people to be warned that children aren't safe on crossings."

Amber, Jade’s mum, said she was “relieved” her daughter wasn’t seriously hurt but added “the next child might not be as lucky”.

Rob Thomas, director of development services at the Vale Council, said he was “concerned” to hear of the accident and would consider placing a lollipop lady there.

"A school crossing patrol officer has not been deployed on the site, although the council will now assess the pedestrian and vehicle flows at this point, along with the accident statistics and this will allow us to consider whether a school crossing patrol is warranted,” he said

"The council takes the safety of school children on their journey to and from school extremely seriously and, by way of example, pupils at Llandough School already benefit from a ‘moving on’ day where they are shown how to use the light controlled crossings on the Cardiff Road and Redlands Road junction. In future we will also consider including this zebra crossing in any practical exercise for pupils."

Jade’s family are appealing for witnesses and if anyone saw the incident they should contact the police on 101.