LORD Bassam, former leader of Brighton and Hove Council, was in Sussex this week to make his first visit to Lewes Prison as a Home Office minister.

He praised the authorities for clamping down on the drugs problem at the jail with an initiative begun this year that has resulted in the number of users falling from 77 per cent of newly-admitted inmates in April to the current figure of 20 per cent.

The prison has introduced measures not only to reduce the supply of substances brought in by visitors but also to decrease demand by therapy.

Naturally, prison officials are pleased with their success and were rightly annoyed when we got in a muddle over a quote from Carol Rose, senior officer in the youth wing, in our report on Wednesday. We said a survey she carried out showed 80 per cent of inmates still used Class A drugs such as crack on the wing.

No, Miss Rose actually told Lord Bassam it had been said up to 80 per cent of young offenders were thought to have used crack before coming into Lewes Prison.

My apologies. The prison's head of residence, Michael Brookes, delighted at the success of this year's initiative, tells me it is also important to note that the positive tests on the 20 per cent of prisoners still taking drugs are made up of both cannabis and opiate-based drugs.

Our report last week of the tragic death of Paul Smith, from Hove, who was killed when his sports car hit a lamp post in Kingsway, gave a misleading impression he had been able to get out of his Toyota after the accident.

I apologise for the distress our clumsy wording caused his family and friends. In his memory more than £2,000 has been raised for the Royal Alexandra Hospital for Sick Children in Brighton.

We reported on the front page last Saturday that Emma Swallow, from Brighton, had been jailed for dealing in heroin while a governor of Whitehawk Infant School. I have been asked by Catherine Shelley, the chair of governors of Whitehawk Primary School, as it has now become, and Barbara Shackell, the head teacher, to point out Ms Swallow is no longer a governor there. She resigned in the summer term.

Lorraine Forbes was delighted we published last Friday her plea for other fans of UK Subs to get in touch with her. She became a big fan of the veteran punk band after seeing them play in Eastbourne and wants other fans to write to her to share memorabilia for a possible convention. Only we didn't give her full address. You can get in touch with Lorraine at Flat 6, 25A Belmore Road, Eastbourne.

In yesterday's paper we were a day too soon with the South Coast Dolls House and Miniatures Fair that is coming to Hove. You can check out all those tiny pots and pans at Hove Town Hall from 12.30pm to 5pm on Sunday and not Saturday as we said.

We were bottom of the class last week with our maths, and we're still there this week because of our spelling. There were two mistakes in the prize wordsearch that appeared in our Independent Schools exhibition supplement on Thursday last week.

I am sorry about that and particularly for the embarrassment it caused Sussex Stationers, who sponsored the supplement.

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