The school was under a few feet of water for a number of days

Most schools hit by England's summer floods are re-opening on time, but 21 are not, the government has said.

A total of 857 schools were affected by the weather in June and July, with some being put under several feet of water.

Some 8,055 pupils are in the 21 schools not yet fully open - 17 primaries, two secondaries and one special needs.

All are all expected to open next week.

Some of the schools are staggering their return, bringing certain years in before others.

Extra help

Schools minister Jim Knight praised all the staff who worked to make sure the children's education would not suffer.

"It is a great achievement that after severe flooding in June and July, almost all of the 857 affected schools are reopening on the first day of term," he said.

"This is testament to the dedication of staff who have put the welfare of young people first - despite many having their own homes flooded."

In all, more than 360,000 pupils were at schools which were damaged in some way by the severe weather.

Mr Knight said extra money would be made available to local authorities which needed more help, on top of the �14m already pledged.