A SCHOOL has jokingly offered to sell the ‘worn out carpet’ covered in chewing gum which Harry Potter author JK Rowling used to walk on.

Wyedean School and Sixth Form Centre in Sedbury said that it was looking to replace the decades-old mat once trodden by the superstar author in response to a BBC Wales Tweet about a Harry Potter superfan collecting a record amount of memorabilia.

With April Fool’s Day looming, it said it was appealing for cash because education cuts meant it couldn’t afford a new carpet.

Even with original chewing ‘gum attached’, it pondered that it could be sacred ground as far as mega Potter fans are concerned, with JK Rowling attending the school from 1976 to 1983, where she was head girl in her final year.

BBC Wales had tweeted: “A Harry Potter superfan from Tonna has managed to “Slytherin” to the record books after collecting thousands of pieces of memorabilia.”

And in response to news of the 3,686 items collection, the school posted yesterday (Tuesday, March 26): “Because of chronic underfunding in education we still have the worn out carpet in our top corridor, originally walked on by @jk_rowling when she was a student here, with original gum attached we believe.

“Happy to consider any reasonable offer towards a replacement, no time wasters.”

JK Rowling grew up in nearby Tutshill and lived from the age of nine to 19 at the Grade II-listed Church Cottage, which has since been bought by her company.

The school library is named after its famous Harry Potter creator, who was inspired to write about the young wizard and his Hogwarts world of spells and potions by science lessons at the school.

She is also thought to have based some of her characters on teachers at Wyedean and residents from the wider community.

Her mother Anne was a science technician at the school, while chemistry teacher John Nettleship is believed to have been the basis for potion-making Professor Snape.

Mr Nettleship, who died in 2011, said it took a while to get used to the idea of being cast as ‘the bad guy’, but he later enjoyed the association, describing JK Rowling’s books as a ‘a wonderful achievement’.