A survivor of Second World War bombing which hit a Catford school has said she wants the graves of the 38 children and six teachers who were killed restored .

Sandhurst Road School was bombed on January 20 1943 during a Luftwaffe day raid which killed children from the ages of five to 16.

Mary Burch, a survivor now in her eighties and living in Sidcup, said: “I was there and my brother was killed. The pilot actually waved at us. There was a little girl playing, he waved at her and she waved back and then he machine-gunned her.”

Mrs Burch’s brother was 10 years old when he was killed.

For decades after the traumatic day she thought she must have imagined the waving pilot, then recently at a recent memorial another survivor said, “Something has been bothering me all these years, that pilot, did he wave?”

Mrs Burch said it’s a shame that she can no longer read her brother’s inscription.

Below are photographs of the state of the engravings Mrs Burch said she took on January 24, 2018:

This Is Local London:

This Is Local London:

This Is Local London:

Headstones are normally cared for by the ‘registered owner’ – the person who has the right to say who can be buried in the plot (the council still owns the land).

The registered owner, usually a relative, is responsible for keeping headstones in a safe condition.

The separate memorial for the victims in Hither Green Cemetery is the responsibilty of Lewisham Council.

A spokeswoman for Lewisham council said: “The Sandhurst School bombing during WW2 was one of the most tragic events in the history of the borough.

“The memorial dedicated to all those who lost their lives in the tragedy is located in Hither Green Cemetery and we regularly maintain it.

“This includes keeping it clean and tidy, periodical jet washing and planting out the surrounding flowerbeds.

“On a recent inspection we found that the inscriptions were legible however, we can arrange to jet wash the memorial again in the early spring.”

There will be a memorial service for the victims on Friday, January 26, at St Andrew’s Church in Catford.

Find out more about the 1943 bombing here.