A TEENAGER has told how he and a schoolmate escaped serious injury when they fell through the window of a moving school bus.

The Arriva North-East double decker was negotiating a roundabout at Potters Bank, Durham City, taking pupils home from Durham Johnston School to Shincliffe, Bowburn and Coxhoe.

Alexander Willey, 17, of Shincliffe, and a boy of 16, who were standing on the lower deck because all the seats were occupied, were thrown against a side window, which was knocked out by the force.

The youngsters landed on the road, but managed to haul themselves out of the path of cars following the bus, which stopped when the screams of other pupils alerted the driver.

Both boys needed hospital treatment, Alexander for a small head cut, and his companion for back pains.

Alexander, who returned to school the following day, said he was pushed against the window by a third boy knocking into him as the bus was turning.

He said: "The window popped out and the next thing I know, I slipped out onto the road. I saw the other lad at the side of me.

"Luckily, neither of us lost consciousness and we were able to scramble to the side of the road.

"We were really lucky. When you think about what could have happened, it could have been way worse."

He said none of the following cars stopped, despite the drivers seeing them falling out.

Alexander's mother, Adrienne Humberstone, said she was considering legal action and said the company did not call to see how Alexander was and only made contact after she wrote a letter of complaint to managing director Jonathan May.

She said: "This shows up lots of safety issues on buses, including whether children should be standing in the first place, particularly when we pay for a seat, and is the condition of the buses satisfactory."

Arriva spokesman John Fozzard said: "At Arriva North-East, safety is our number one priority and, as such, we put our vehicles through vigorous and in-depth tests every 28 days.

"This is an ongoing investigation involving the police and after we have reviewed CCTV footage, we are considering our legal options in relation to the incident. Jonathan May, our managing director, has responded to Mrs Humberstone's letter last Friday."

A police spokesman said inquiries were ongoing.