Students at a Sussex school have been warned about internet cheating - passing off work downloaded from the web as their own.

Parents received a newsletter from Peacehaven Community School alerting them to the problem.

A statement from the school in Greenwich Way, Peacehaven, said: "All students need to be aware that material found on web sites and in books cannot be copied or printed and handed in as their own work.

"Plagiarism is when you try to cheat by handing in someone else's work as your own, or if you heavily copy another writer's work.

"If you are printing off 'found' materials and presenting them as your own, your teacher will not be able to reward your work fairly or give you accurate guidance as to how to improve in future.

"These issues were recently highlighted when a number of students presented internet materials as their own.

"Please note that if you use the internet or reference books, you must ensure that the work you hand in is written in your own words."