Security Guards on Patrol at Birmingham School

It sounds like something out of a George Orwell book. St George’s Academy in Hockley has confirmed it used guards to help ensure the ‘smooth running’ of the school. Principal Nicola Hutchinson refused to say why the guards were needed.

Labour MP Khalid Mahmood had this to say: ‘A tactic like having guards in schools does not encourage a great deal of trust and support for the young people who are trying to get back into the education system. These young people have issues but they need to have their confidence built and be supported.’

Anarchy in Croston (well, not exactly)

Vandals have poured paint stripper over a car in Croston, Lancashire. The car is question was a BMW X1 worth £26,000. The damage is estimated at £4,000.

The owner of the vehicle, Stewart Simon, had this to say: ‘I’m shocked that this has happened. I believe it’s youths in the area that have done it as some sort of practical joke. We’ve never had any trouble like this before in the village of Croston. It’s a lovely place and we have excellent neighbours, the people that have done it obviously have no understanding of what problems damage like this can cause.’

He added: ‘I’m definitely going to step up security in the area, perhaps security lights or even CCTV cameras. We want people to think twice about doing something like this again.’