Shameful remarks

The student unions at Brighton and Sussex Universities should be ashamed of themselves.

A guide called Planet Brighton for new students to the town says Moulsecoomb is a place to send shivers down their spines.

And it gives a warning to them not to go there even though some existing students already live quite happily on the estate.

Moulsecoomb has had its problems. But many improvements have been made over the last decade and thanks to the Government's New Deal more will be undertaken in the future.

There's a good sense of community in Moulsecoomb and the local school is thriving.

It's nothing like a no-go area.

Planet Brighton's article is an unjustifiable slur on the estate and its people.

At least the student unions' presidents have had the good grace to apologise. They must make sure that nothing like it ever happens again.

In-security

A boy at Worth Abbey public school, near Crawley, noticed something was odd in the ceiling when he was having a shower. He removed a panel to find a video camera pointing at him.

Now a cleaner has been sacked and the headmaster has written to all parents assuring them that none of the boys were at risk.

He says it was a primitive set up but if it was that obvious then it should have been spotted straight away.

It doesn't say much for security at the school that this was allowed to happen and parents will want to be assured there are also stringent checks on employees.

Sounding off

Estate agent Paul Bott is an impressive sight when he lifts nearly 50 stone on the bench press when he's working out.

But he also makes impressive noises which proved too much for the sensitive souls who go to the David Lloyd fitness club at Brighton Marina.

Now bosses have asked him to tone down the loud grunts or else practice his weightlifting elsewhere.

Paul's natural reaction to that should be a loud snort - of disgust.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.