Pupils at a college have been left angry after being told their study leave had been moved up and they had 10 minutes to say goodbye to friends and leave school.
One student at Ulidia Integrated College in Carrickfergus, Northern Ireland, says she and her classmates feel like they were "shoved out the back door" after the school changed their plans.
The pupil, who didn't wish to be named as they still have to return to complete ALevels, said it had deprived them of the opportunity to say goodbye properly to the school, friends and staff after seven years.
The plan had originally been for the year group to finish up for study leave on May 10, but that was moved up to May 5 with little notice given.
The student admitted that a water fight had been planned for the last day but said that it was to be held away from the school, reports Belfast Live.
"Everyone had prepared for a water fight outside of school, so not in the school itself, then getting shirts signed, cards for teachers and just for the courses that weren't finished, we were able to timeline where we would be finished," they said.
"On the Friday, May 5, it was the Year 12 leaver and we all knew about that, we all watched them get their shirts signed.
"It was last period, about 10 minutes before the end, we all got called down to the Assembly hall.
"They announced that they were starting our study leave now and some students went up to get their belongings and they were escorted as they did so, in case there was any backlash.
"Some students were then chatting outside, saying goodbye and a teacher just came up to us and said we were free to go and made it very clear we weren't welcome to stay."
The pupil said it was frustrating as it affected some courses that were in the process of finishing up and it meant some pupils would have to come back in to school to hand in pieces of work.
"It's just a little upsetting that they've done this to us, I think it could have been handled way better, we're all just very upset and it made it worse seeing a Year 12 leavers post on Facebook," they said.
"What one of my friends said and it really stuck with me was that it was a slap in the face.
"You can see a post where the Year 12 got a leavers assembly, an ice cream van, shirts signed and we got shoved out the back door."
Parents have also expressed their anger at the decision and said they felt their children had been let down by the abrupt end to their year.
