Rain had swelled the level of the beck

He told assistant North Yorkshire Coroner John Sleightholme how the party had crossed the beck and walked along part of its bed before retracing their steps.

Mr Hulme, who is six feet tall, said as the party came to cross the beck on the way back it had risen from his knees to his waist.

He said he and teacher Dawn Nicholson stood in the river and passed the students one by one to each other to get them to the other side.

Mr Hulme told the coroner most of the children had difficulties and one boy, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was washed about four or five metres downstream before he managed to regain his footing and climb out.

He said: "When I passed him to Miss Nicholson I didn't grab on and he actually went down the river. But we got the feeling he was messing about because he was laughing.

Too dangerous

"He was taken about four or five metres. It wasn't far. He went down feet first. He was rolling in the water."

He said another small boy was scared and clung on to him as he passed him across saying: "Don't let me go."

Mr Hulme said all the children returned safely and were in good spirits having enjoyed the experience.

PC David Carpenter, of North Yorkshire Police, who filmed part of the beck more than two hours after the incident, told the jury at that time it would have been too dangerous for him to cross it.