ALL Okehampton College pupils will return to their classes today (Thursday) following a massive clean-up in the aftermath of the floods.
But the extended half-term holiday due to the whole of the old part of the college being under water has meant some events in the run up to Christmas have had to be cancelled.
College principal Philip Herriman said it was disappointing but the children's education took priority.
'Our chief concern has been to get the children back into school as soon as possible,' he said. 'It is particularly unfortunate that we had to cancel the end of term Christmas Concert on December 14 but as it was a major rock musical the children have not had the time to practice.'
The college was closed for three days last week after the first serious flooding incident in its history.
This was caused by the overflow of the leat behind the site and the sheer volume of rain.
Thousands of pounds of books and equipment stored in the basement were ruined and severe flood damage affected the library, canteen, English rooms and art rooms.
Emergency services, cleaners and staff worked round the clock to get as much of the building as possible suitable for human habitation again.
Some pupils returned to school at the end of last week but nine classrooms were still out of use at the beginning of this week and children were advised to wear warm clothing as the floods damaged the boiler system.
Year 7 pupils were the last children to return to school this morning as the site slowly returns to normal.
Mr Herriman said that over the weekend a team of contractors and cleaning staff were in the college and all the carpets had been taken up and the floors scraped.
'It has been quite a slow process because we could not get hold of many dehumidifiers to help dry the place out as they are being used elsewhere,' said the principal.
'Everybody has been working flat out — they have been tremendous.'
Representatives from Devon County Council have visited the college and the leat and are compiling a report on the flooding incident.
The college principal said it was important to ensure this never happened again.
l In light of the cancellation of the College Christmas Concert, Okehampton's gospel choir 'Soul Attitude' have come to the rescue and will be putting on a special concert with guests in Fairplace Church Hall on the evening of December 8.