Walking along a back street behind the Co-op in Blatchington Road a little after 9am this morning, I spied a small plastic coin bag, the kind used by banks, which had been dropped and had burst.

A small pile of pennies lay in a heap in the gutter.

Less than 100 yards away, there is a school. Numerous young children, some accompanied by parents, were coming along the same pavement.

Several saw the broken bag and loose coins and commented - but nobody stopped to pick any up.

I was surprised. I crossed the road so I could continue to watch unobtrusively but, after another ten minutes, nobody had stopped.

Possibly some didn't notice the treasure at their feet but I know some did.

So I picked up the bag and coins myself. They totalled 98p (maybe I missed some). I'll add the tuppence and change it for a pound coin next time I pass a bank.

Does this little tale tell us something about today's affluent kids?

-Bob Potter, Hove