A HISTORIC clock is ticking once again following a chance find at an Otley school.

The timepiece, discovered during a clear-out of a cellar last year, dates back to about 1880 – and so to Westgate Primary School’s very beginnings.

Painted cream and bearing the inscription R COAD, OTLEY, the clock piqued head teacher Helen Carpenter’s interest enough for her to take it to an expert to find out more.

She said: “We found a cupboard which had been rotted together in the dampest part of the cellar and when we broke into it we found this large, old school clock.

“I took it to Otley Watch and Clock Repairs, in Kirkgate Arcade, for an opinion as to its merits.

“From its movement, they were able to say it dated from about 1880-ish and it would be possible, and cost effective, to repair it.

“The building it was found in is the original school building, created in 1871 and owned by Duncan’s Mill until 1882, when it was taken over by the School Board. It seems likely, therefore, that the clock was made for the school.”

Stuart Dickinson, from Otley Watch and Clock Repairs, devoted a whole week to restoring the mechanism to its former glory.

The clock was attached to the school’s main hall, where it is now once again keeping time.

He said: “It was a very big job that took a week’s work, and not one I’d normally take on.”

Ms Carpenter is continuing her investigations into the timepiece’s history.