A DAD says children were left 'terrified' after being left to cross a busy trunk road themselves after a lollipop crossing patroller failed to turn up for duty.

Brian Flannigan of Fairlie hit out after his daughter and other children were left with no one to help them cross the main road in the village.

Mr Flannigan, who is the new owner of the Village Inn Restaurant, described the road as 'scary' for a young child without help - and he says education bosses should have warned parents in advance that there was no patroller.

Brian said: "I think in this day and age even if there was a text from the school to tell us that there was no lollipop man or woman, it would help.

"I would have gone and accompanied my daughter when crossing the road myself,

"It was a rainy day and as she waited to cross she was drenched as a lorry hit a puddle.

"It is a scary road, and some of the kids were absolutely terrified on the day."

The lollipop person is usually situated on the Main Road near a roll shop takeaway, but on 6 March there was no one on duty.

Police say that the council did not notify them about the lack of cover.

Inspector Colin Convery said: "Ultimately it is the safety of kids. If there is not a lollipop man or woman present, we would happily deploy police to see that children can cross the road safely. It may have been a short term absence and they were not able to cover it, but we were certainly not made aware of it."

Local community councillor David Telford says the situation also highlights a lack of crossings in the village, branding it a 'disgrace'.

The only pedestrian crossing is at The Causeway and residents have previously called for there additional crossings, including at Keppenburn, over recent years.

Mr Telford said: "There are thousands of heavy goods lorries that use that road throughout the year.

"I really think it is a travesty that there are not more crossings in the village."

A North Ayrshire Council spokesperson said: “On the day in question, our school crossing patroller was unavoidably delayed and unfortunately missed his morning shift at the school crossing.

“We do have mobile teams and janitors who can provide back-up but due to the location of the crossing and the timing we were unable to provide cover at such short notice on this day.

“We have identified that there is a need for a crossing at this point and have no plans to remove it.”