Schoolchildren in their hundreds are facing disruption as the Strangford Lough ferry in Co. Down is to be affected over the next seven days due to strike action by ferry workers.

The passenger car-ferry service that links the villages of Strangford and Portaferry will not be operational for a week.

This means that commuters also will have to find an alternative method of transport as the service which has two car-ferries, Strangford II and Portaferry II (as above) are out of service.

According to BBC News a school principal said that four of his pupils will be left without any way of getting to school.

Members of the union, Unite, have voted to take strike-action after rejecting a pay offer of £552 extra per year for workers.

Commenting on the strike, Sharon Graham, Unite general secretary said the offer was a "slap in the face" for those responsible for the maintenance of vital public services and infrastructure.

It was on Thursday, at 00:01 (BST) that the strike had begun and is to continue into next week up until 23.59 on 26 April, Wednesday. For updated information visit the TravelWatchNI website here.

More here on the strike at the Strangford Lough Ferry Service which Afloat adds is operated by the Department for Infrastructure (DfI)'s Roads Division South, a Northern Ireland Government Department.

The road distance between Strangford and Portaferry is 46 miles and takes on average 30 minutes to drive. Whereas the ferry route of less than 1 nautical mile takes around 8 minutes to complete.