The Blitz: 'We would lay out the bodies on the playground'

Joan Sprigg provided first aid at a post in Birmingham

A woman who used to lay out the bodies of air raid victims on a school playground has been recalling nights of "relentless bombing" on the 80th anniversary of The Blitz.

The attacks on British cities began in London on 7 September, 1940.

Joan Sprigg, from Birmingham, was serving in the Air Raid Precautions (ARP) during the Luftwaffe's campaigns.

The industrial city was under threat because of its role in the war effort which included Spitfire production.

"I was 15 going on 16 and I lived in Birmingham and I was anxious to play a part," said Ms Sprigg, who lives at the Royal Star and Garter residential home in nearby Solihull.

"And you had to be 16 to join the Air Raid Precautions. So I'm afraid I told a little fib and upped my age by a couple of months and said I was 16."

Ms Sprigg lied about her age in order to join the ARP

Eighty years ago Ms Sprigg was posted in the Bordesley Green area of Birmingham and provided first aid treatment.

"[The post] was situated in a school and was fitted out to deal with casualties. And we had plenty of those when the air raids started in 1940," she said.

"It was night after night of relentless bombing.

"They used to start quite early, and they would sometimes go on for 13 hours.

"They made a terrific noise. The floor beneath us shuddered. We held our breath. There was a giant roar and we were all quieted."

Ms Sprigg later served in the 2nd Anti-Aircraft Group Command at RAF Uxbridge

"We had a lot of dead who we used to lay out in the playground. There were ever so many dead. It was horrendous, quite horrendous," she added.

"Although I was very young somehow you coped, you got through it.

"The morning after an air raid, you would pick your way through the debris, but there was never a thought of giving in."

Ms Sprigg continued serving in the ARP until 1942 when, aged 18, she joined the Auxiliary Territorial Service, serving in the 2nd Anti-Aircraft Group Command at RAF Uxbridge, where she worked as a secretary until 1945.

Areas of Birmingham were devastated by bombing