A five-year-old boy was left lying in the road after being knocked down by a hit-and-run driver near a Herne Bay school.

Archie Currier was with his grandmother when he stepped off the kerb and got struck by
a passing 4x4 which did not stop.

The incident comes just weeks after Herne Bay Infant School warned parents that thoughtless parking on the zig zags and double yellow lines outside is “endangering children’s lives”.

Archie, who is in the reception class, managed to pick himself up and was taken home to nearby Gordon Road but had suffered swelling to the side of his head.

Mum Catherine Currier rushed back from work at the Marine Hotel in Tankerton and called paramedics.

After examining him, they advised she and husband Tony should take him to the QEQM hospital in Margate, where doctors decided to keep him in overnight for observation.

Catherine, 38, says they were hugely relieved he had not been more seriously hurt.

“On this occasion, it had nothing to do with parked cars obstructing the view outside the school,” she said.

“It was just one of those things. Archie is normally very aware of roads and knows the danger.

“But a momentary lapse of concentration is all it takes and unfortunately he stepped off the footpath.

“Of course, my mum, who picks him up in the afternoons, was devastated.

“They had already crossed the road together and he went ahead on his scooter to the next corner where he always waits for her.

“It’s just around the corner from where we live but he slipped out of her sight for a couple of seconds.

“Another parent who witnessed it said it was quite clear he had been hit, but whether the driver realised I don’t know.

“All we know it was a white, old-style 4x4 vehicle and we have now reported it to the police.”

The accident at 4pm last Wednesday prompted messages of concern from other parents on the Herne Bay Chatter Facebook page.

Catherine said: “I would just like to thank every one for their messages, and the school’s welfare officer for visiting to make sure Archie was OK.

“He’s absolutely fine now but had a lucky escape. Another foot into the road and it could have been so much worse.”