RE DAILY Echo article September 26, where school secretary assaults a young boy but walks free following her trial where she was accused of smacking a young boy who was being disruptive.

The story does not say how old this young man was and therefore it's left up to the readers' imagination to picture the scenario. My thoughts were that the young man was probably 14 to 15 years old, built like a brick chicken house, and as Mrs Farmer was busy invigilating was making a nuisance of himself. He was being moved from one room to another (classroom to broom cupboard springs to mind) Mrs Farmer slapped him on his right arm as she was not tall enough to give him a thick ear. She walks free, free to lose her job, her self esteem, her reputation damaged. One hundred hours of unpaid work etc.

The prosecution said that a young man should be able to attend school and not suffer an assault, and I would not argue with that but it doesn't mean that he can do what he likes and get away with it. In my day it just wouldn't have happened but in the unlikely event that it did, little Peregrines feet would not have touch the ground when he was being hauled off for six of the best and had he told Mummy what had taken place, he would probably received six more reminders to behave.

Peter Green

Southampton