NOT all heroes wear capes, as the old saying goes.

Some don the blazers of Peacehaven Community School.

Five Year 8 pupils from the school acted swiftly when they noticed a fire at a block of flats in Balcombe Road, Peacehaven, on Monday afternoon.

Brave youngsters Ethan Pearson, Akosua G’yasi-Addo, Yasmin Slattery, Honey Robinson-Wood and Joe Durrant made their way into the building to alert residents to the danger.

They helped evacuate the building – and their heroics did not stop there.

The children then called East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service which said the fire, which happened at 3.29pm, was out by the time crews arrived from Seaford.

A female resident from the flats contacted the school to say thanks.

She said: “It probably wasn’t the safe thing to do but they were very brave and acted very quickly.

“Well done and thank you.”

The fabulous five have been commended by Austen Hindman, headteacher at Peacehaven Community School.

He said: “We are all so proud of these students.

“They acted selflessly to protect other people, showing real courage at a very stressful time.

“We are a community school and these students put our values into action.”

Peacehaven has been blighted by youth-related crime in the past year, with a string of incidents reported by The Argus.

One instance was Derek Bishop, a 63-year-old grandfather attacked by a gang of teenagers while walking home with his wife.

They beat him and left in a pool of his own blood after being taunted over his height.

Fatma Bacha, the Peacehaven youth mayor, attends the community school.

She said the actions of her fellow pupils were a positive step towards tackling the bad reputation given to children because of bad behaviour by others.

She thinks they have “broken free” from stereotypes.

Fatma said: “I was delighted and proud to hear of the bravery of my fellow students.

“Showing they can break free of the stereotypical label given to young people and demonstrating the length they will go to to help their fellow residents of Peacehaven, is something I want to continue working on during my time as youth mayor.”