CONSTANT banging in the usually peaceful village of Hook End drove residents to distraction after a farmer's bird-scarer went on the blink.

"It's like a war zone", "it's like living on the outskirts of Beirut", "cannons" and "gun fire" were just some of the comments from angry villagers after the gas-powered device malfunctioned near Hay Green Lane, causing a relentless two-day torrent of loud bangs.

Farmers say that bird-scarers are essential to keep pigeons at bay to ensure that sufficient crops are produced to feed the nation.

Indeed, the poor weather of the past few months has apparently led to a battle between pigeons and slugs, both of whom are racing to snack on rape seed due to the birds' usual diet of berries and acorns being in scarce supply.

On February 9 and 10, however, residents claim the bird-scarer went off every few minutes from dawn until dusk.

Retired mother of three, Margaret Jarvis, 63, from Hay Green Lane, lives in close proximity to the bird-scarer.

She is unhappy that the equipment has to be used so close to homes.

"It's a major health hazard, it could have driven someone completely mad," she said.

"I can now tell what it's like during a war because that's what it's like here, I know it sounds like I'm being melodramatic but that's what it's like, it's unbelievable.

Mrs Jarvis said she understands that farmers are trying to make a living in tough conditions, but believes that using a bird-scarer near homes is not the way to do it.

She added: "They should be banned because they do something to you psychologically.

"It's not anything you can explain, they just do something to your head.

"It makes you feel that you want to get out of your own house."

Although the deterrent device has been used for many years, residents say the noises got out of control on February 9 and 10.

On February 11, Mrs Jarvis reported the problem to Environmental Health at Brentwood Borough Council and the noise stopped after a visit from the department two days later.

Arthritis sufferer Linda De Rosa, 66, who has lived in Hook End for 20 years, is hoping that the scarers will not be disrupting her afternoon sleep any more.

"I'm not in particularly good health, neither is my husband, and I do not sleep well at night, tossing and turning," she said.

"I need to try to catch up with some sleep in the afternoon and because of the constant noise that's been impossible."

Blackmore resident Margaret Thompson said she could hear the bangs from her home at The Green.

"It felt like I was living on the outskirts of Beirut," she said.

"We get guns occasionally because they're shooting the pheasants but I do not expect this."

Alice Padfield, the daughter of Chris Padfield, who owns the farm on which the bird-scarer is positioned, said such equipment has been used for "generations."

She said the device had developed a fault, before adding: "I would like to apologise – we were not aware and as soon as we were made aware we removed it.

"We do not want to upset residents, that's the last thing we want to do."

A spokesman for Brentwood Borough Council said: "The council took up complaints made by residents in Hook End that a bird-scarer was causing them disturbance, including at the weekend.

"We discussed the matter with the farmer involved and we now understand that the use of this device has stopped."

Little ones have been getting up close and personal with some of the Zoo's biggest bugs and insects – not batting an eyelid or flinching as South Woodham Ferrers's finest creepy crawlies made their way across little palms and arms.

Reece Pounder from Maldon shrieked with delighted when a giant millipede wriggled up and down his arm, while Archie Jerome from Upminster got close enough to see what one of the Zoo's massive snails was hiding underneath his shell.

The Zoo's resident celebrity, Percy the Porcupine has also been inundated with visitors this week after his hunt for a girlfriend went county-wide. The spiky-coated bachelor is extremely fond of his keeper Chloe Roche but is sick of life on the shelf and is on the lookout for his soulmate.

Tropical Wings manager John Ray said: "It's certainly been a fun week at the Zoo, with all the little ones coming out to play in our Big Bug Encounter. The meerkats and coatis have been getting fussed over daily but the star attraction this week has definitely been Percy. He's something of a celebrity in the Zoo and the children keep asking if we've managed to find him a girlfriend yet.

"It's something we're definitely working on – hopefully by next Valentine's Day, Percy will be settled down with a family of his own on the way!"

A CONVINCING 12-0 win for the Chieftains on Sunday night saw them return to the top of the division as fierce rivals Romford Raiders slipped to a 7-5 home defeat to fifth-placed Invicta Dynamos.

Julius Sinkovic got the ball rolling before Tibor Schneider scored a peach of a goal and the period left the home side 2-0 up going into the break.

Only three goals came in the second period, courtesy of a Gary Clarke brace and Danny Hammond strike.

This game was Hammond's 300th in Chieftains' colours and makes him the 10th highest appearance maker in the clubs history. He has some way to go to overtake leaders Danny Wright (531 games) and Richard Whiting (526), but with youth on his side and at least two more seasons at the Riverside, he should comfortably rise up the listings.

In his time, he has scored 266 goals and notched up over 210 assists, which puts him seventh overall in points scored, a few points behind Duane Ward.

Clarke also broke a milestone against Solent, in that he broke 100 goals in Chieftains' colours mark in only his 93rd game.

In the final session, it was one-way traffic in a procession of goals. Michael Ranby scored the first of the period, followed by single markers from Ross Brears and Cameron Bartlett. Twin brother Grant Bartlett was next to score.

Then it was the defence's turn to become the strike force as Sean Easton netted before Schneider got his second of the night late on to round out the scoring. Ben Clements had a quiet, but excellent, night in goal for the home side.

Sunday sees strugglers MK Thunder come to the Riverside (6.30pm).

ART dealer John Brandler has spent 30 years buying and selling some of the most fashionable work in the world and regards himself as one of the shrewdest dealers in the business.

So when the bad news came that he had been ripped off by a credit card fraudster, he was ready to hit back.

In February, his bank informed him that two payments totalling £13,500 for a pair of important Banksy works were fraudulent.

The money was withdrawn from his account and returned to the card holder, leaving him without the cash or art.

When a caller using the same female pseudonym called his Coptfold Road gallery requesting two pieces by the Bristol-born street artist worth a combined £10,000, he contacted the police and the Gazette.

That order was never posted – instead a washing machine lid was delivered to an address in Plumstead, where on Friday, February 8 police arrested a 25-year-old man.

This suspect has now been bailed pending further enquiries.

Officers searched an address in Charlton, believed to be linked to the suspect, where they recovered Wrong War.

The artwork No Ball Games was recovered after a member of the public purchased it from the suspect.

He became suspicious of the transaction and contacted the gallery directly, subsequently returning the artwork.

Mr Brandler said he believes an attempt to purchase a £20,000 Damien Hirst from him was also fraudulent.

Art crime is estimated to be worth $6 billion globally.

Mr Brandler says he has evidence that art galleries in Kent, Newcastle, Los Angeles and New York had also fallen for similar scams in the past.

He said: "Crime involving art is huge. Art is an international currency.

"A Banksy is worth the same here in Brentwood as it is in Hong Kong or New York. It is dead easy to move illegally gained profits across borders."

However, Mr Brandler has saved much of his scorn for the banks, which he said took no interest when his suspicions were first raised after an art dealer acquaintance in Kent warned him about the scam.

"I asked the bank if they could confirm if the two cards used to buy Wrong War and No Ball Games were registered to the same person or if there was any fraud associated with them.

"They didn't want to know. About 36 hours later the money had been taken back out of my account.

"It's no loss to them."

Detective Sergeant Geoff Grogan from Greenwich CID said: "We acted very quickly after the victim contacted us and this gave us the opportunity not only to make an arrest, but also to recover the artworks.

"We believe that there may be more than one person involved. We are also in the process of contacting the card-holders who were unaware that their cards were being used. Our investigation is still open and will continue".

One card used in the transaction is registered to a holder in Arizona. Police are trying to identify the second.

ESSEX Leopards will look to collect their fourth piece of silverware in 13 months when they face Tees Valley Mohawks in the National Trophy Final today.

Having won the treble last season, the Big Cats will travel to Braunstone Leisure Centre, Leicester, hoping to add the one trophy that eluded them last season.

The two sides met in the opening game of the season, with the Mohawks winning 83-81 after a controversial final few seconds in which player-coach Robert Youngblood's game-tying three-pointer was ruled as a two.

The VCars.co.uk League Division One meeting between the teams in January ended with Leopards gaining revenge as 26 points from Greg Hernandez led the Big Cats to a 96-88 home win.

Mohawks lost both their games at the weekend, including a three-point loss against champions-elect Reading Rockets and are now down to fifth with a 10-7 record, one place ahead of Leopards, having played one game more.

Leopards captain Taner Adu also won the treble with Manchester Magic in 2009, but missed out on the Trophy and is keen to collect the only piece of silverware that has eluded him.

"Hopefully, we can win the Trophy, because that's something neither the Leopards nor I have won before and we also want to win the play-offs.

"Both of those targets are achievable, because everyone is hitting form at the right time just about now.

"I've really enjoyed being here and want to taste success this season."

The Big Cats will not have much rest after the final, as on Sunday they face Medway Park Crusaders at Crystal Palace (tip-off 1.15pm).

Leopards head into the final on the back of a weekend, in which they split their two games, Youngblood being forced to sit out the action with tonsillitis.

The Big Cats had an early chance to get used to the court at Leicester as they faced the Warriors, but after a poor second half they went down 101-92.

The following day a big crowd at Southend saw Leopards win a thriller 68-65 against Bristol Academy Flyers.

Leopards led for 34 of the 40 minutes, but were never able to pull away and the game went down to the final seconds.

Carl Josey – who led the Big Cats with 16 points, eight rebounds and three steals – made it a three-point game off a Hernandez assist with 51 seconds remaining before Enrique Garcia set up a thrilling finish with a dunk from an inbounds play.

Adu finished with 15 points, five boards and three assists on the court where he had previously starred with Essex Pirates, while Cummings had 11 points, four assists and as many rebounds.

A 17-YEAR-OLD has been given his first taste of independence thanks to a travel training scheme for young people who have never been anywhere on their own.

Daniel Pollock, from Collier Row, is one of several young people with special educational needs who have been offered one-to-one training so that they do not have to rely on council-run transport to get to school or college.

The 12-week scheme is run by Havering Council in conjunction with DABD (uk), a charity that develops services to support and promote independence, social inclusion and personal development.

Several other London boroughs have implemented similar schemes following an initiative by East London Solutions, a group that encourages boroughs to explore joint working opportunities.

Daniel started his training in September last year.

His mum, Dawn, said: "I was very apprehensive at first because he had never been anywhere on his own but I decided to give it a go and I have been really impressed.

"Daniel has so much more confidence than before, it hasn't just helped him with getting to and from places, it's also helped him to talk to other people, he wouldn't normally do that.

"He's really confident now and he even refuses when I ask if he wants a lift because he prefers to use public transport.

"It has been really hard work for both of us but he has done really well, he's so independent now and I am really proud of him."

Daniel said: "I thought, how hard can it be, and just did it.

"It was hard and sometimes I went wrong but now I can go into town to meet my friends and I don't have to get a lift anywhere."

Those who have successfully completed the training are now able to make their own way to and from school or college on their own using public transport.

Some have developed the skills and confidence to travel around the borough to meet friends or go into town without having to rely on others to take them.

Josie Foreland, 18, also completed her training and now has much more freedom.

Her trainer showed her pedestrian friendly routes with zebra crossings and Josie learnt two different routes to college so that she can choose which way she wants to go.

Her mum Lynn Foreland said: "It's been absolutely wonderful, Josie has a new lease of life.

"She goes out on her own and sends me a text to let me know she's got to where she wants to go.

"I am really glad that she did it, she has so much more freedom than she did before.

"The service has been excellent, it's great to know that she can go out and everything will be OK."

A ceremony was held last week for those who have completed their travel training, where they received a medal from Councillor Lynden Thorpe, Mayor of Havering, for their hard work.

Councillor Paul Rochford, cabinet member for children and learning, said: "I am thrilled with this achievement and proud of everyone who has taken part. These young people now have new found confidence to travel around the borough.

"Independence is something that most of us take for granted and many of these people have had to rely on others to do everyday things like going into town or going to college which can be very limiting.

"This is a huge achievement for them and they should all be proud of themselves."

Anyone who is interested in the travel training scheme can find out more at www.havering.gov.uk

A TEACHER and part-time artist received 1,500 hits to her website in just two hours after TV presenter Davina McCall endorsed her work on Twitter.

Sarah Yewman, 40, of Springfield Road, Chelmsford, has been swamped with orders for her miniature peg people, which she originally painted for her children Josh, Lucy and Jed.

So she was stunned when the Big Brother presenter responded to Sarah's message on Twitter asking her for feedback by re-tweeting it to her 1,500,000 followers on the social networking website.

Sarah, who works at All Saint's Pre-School, said: "It has gone absolutely mad, it is quite funny.

"I saw Davina was on Twitter, and I know she tweets about things she likes, so I sent her a link to my blog and asked her what she thinks – I had nothing to lose.

"She then re-tweeted my tweet with the message 'I love it'."

By the end of the day Sarah had 3,000 hits on her website and orders coming in from her new followers, including requests for "miniature peg people" painted like the children's TV show character Noddy and an American footballer.

UK Company DudeBox, who supply the figures for her to paint, contacted Sarah immediately to ask her to collaborate on making a peg person of Davina.

The Davina toy will include a T-shirt decorated with a Big Brother eye on the back, the words Big Mother on the front, and a tattoo on her hand.

"It should be done by the end of the week," Sarah said.

"I am going to tweet her a pic ture of it when it is done.

"Everyone tells us about the power of Twitter, and I am living proof.

"I am going to write a short piece on it because from a small tweet all of this happened."

Visit Sarah's blog at http://sarahyewman.blogspot.com

FANS of live music were celebrating this week as work started on Chelmsford's newest venue.

With the closure of Hooga in Victoria Road last month, many gig-goers were pessimistic about the live music scene in the city.

But the opening of Asylum, in Viaduct Road near the bus station, means there will be a dedicated music venue in Chelmsford before the summer.

Musicians Eddie and Denis Wood of Galleywood took it upon themselves to find a home for the county's emerging talent, because they were fed up with the lack of live music venues in the city.

"We were having trouble finding somewhere for our own group, Stormchild, to play and just thought, 'let's do it ourselves'," said Eddie.

Stormchild started in the 1980s as a punk and acid rock band but over the years have moved closer and closer to pure punk, becoming part of a growing scene in London.

While the band gigged regularly in the capital, Eddie says he became increasingly frustrated that there was nowhere suitable to play closer to home.

"I thought, 'if I can't find somewhere to play in Chelmsford, I'll create a venue'.

"I don't want it to be just another way to promote the band, so we won't be playing the opening night or anything. I just think there should be somewhere for bands to play in Chelmsford.

"This area is a nightmare for booking bands. I was talking to a booking agent the other day and he was saying he hasn't been able to get bands into Chelmsford, Brentwood or Colchester for years."

Although Asylum will not be a huge venue, it will offer a chance to see bands on a regular basis and Eddie says he wants it to feel like something different to what is already on offer in the city.

"My idea venue would just cater for my tastes, but you've got to be realistic and appreciate that everyone has different tastes in music.

"But I still want it to have an edgy feel," he added.

After weeks of planning and negotiation, work started on creating the new bar on Thursday, and Eddie hopes everything will be ready for a launch in a couple of months' time, hopefully with an all-day gig.

Eddie, 51, and his wife Denise, 50, want the two-storey venue to provide a place for all sorts of bands to play, both local and touring, while it will be a bar and café by day.

The couple also have some interesting plans for the look of Asylum, with a Victorian gothic feel the aesthetic they want for the 180-capacity venue.

Eddie reckons Viaduct Road is fast becoming the "Bohemian" part of Chelmsford with Asylum joining a row of businesses that include a tattoo and piercing parlour, music store iDrums, record shop Intense Records and specialist pub The Ale House.

Eddie, a builder by trade, said Asylum would be the realisation of a long-held dream.

"It's something I've wanted to do for a long time, something I've got a passion for and can really enjoy," he said.

A PAIR of devoted ducks have returned to a haunted community pond thanks to the hard work of nearby residents.

It has been about three years since waterfowl have been seen cruising up and down the Mosbach Pond in the Thriftwood Estate, Brentwood.

After 15 years of neglect, the pond had became so clogged up with weeds that it became impossible for the birds to make it their home.

Despite the recent paucity of living creatures, however, there are rumours that the pond plays host to the ghost of a farmer and his horse who disappeared into its murky depths after losing their way one evening.

The pair of mallards – one male and one female – returned two weeks ago after dozens of residents clubbed together to reverse years of unchecked vegetation growth.

The birds had left after the pond became so badly choked with weeds and silt that a toad would have struggled to enjoy a splash, let alone a duck.

Philippa Barr, whose house in Roth Drive overlooks the pond, said: "It's so nice to see the ducks back. It shows that the hard work has been worth it.

"The pond had been badly blocked up.

"As for the ghost story, apparently you can hear the ghostly sounds of a horse whinnying sometimes."

"It's just fantastic that they have come back," said Mark Reed, who was one of several residents who had contributed their time and effort in making the project such a success.

According to Mr Reed, who lives next to the pond in Victors Crescent, it was almost as large as that in Shenfield Common when the estate was built in the 1980s.

Over the years however it gradually shrunk to about a fifth of the size.

Mr Reed said: "Various work has been done over the years including a big project by the council about 15 years ago.

"But in recent years it's just gone down and down

"So we thought 'why don't we get everyone together to do something about it'?"

More than 100 hundred man hours later, the pond is visible once more.

Brambles have also been cleared, two willow trees – a species notorious for the amount of water they use – have been chopped down and a manmade home for small creatures and insects called a Hibernaculum has been constructed to encourage wildlife and fauna.

Mr Reed said: "It was only done and finished last July.

"We had a very wet few months since then and that must have helped fill it up."

The big talking point now is whether the devoted pair will produce ducklings in the spring.

Mr Reed added: "We are just over the moon that our hard work has paid off.

"We are just now looking forward and hoping for some new arrivals, that would be great.

"All we need now to make it complete is a duck island – not paid for by the taxpayer, obviously."

FIVE men will appear before Chelmsford magistrates on Saturday morning after a major operation crack down on class A drug supply in Essex. 
Police seized more than five kilos of substances, believed to be cocaine and worth £600,000, as well as large quantities of cash and other assets on Friday.
Officers arrested ten people from Essex and the bordering east London Metropolitan area in connection with the large scale distribution of Class A drugs and money laundering offences.
Keef MCleod, 35, of Bowfell Drive, Langdon Hills; Rruzhdi Tafhazi, 35; of Chelveston Way, Peterborough Lincs; Daniel Clark, 38, of Marlborough Rd, Dagenham; Saimir Neziri, 30, of Wythenshawe Road, Dagenham; and Kevin Cavin, 26, of Thetford Gardens, Dagenham have been charged with conspiracy to supply class A drugs. A 39-year-old man from north London; a 30-year-old man from Dagenham; a 24-year-old man from northwest London, a 34-year-old man from Hornchurch and a 27- year-old woman from Basildon have all been released on police bail to various dates in May and June while enquiries continue. 
The drugs bust follows a five-month investigation by detectives from the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate (SCD).
The Head of the SCD, ACC Gary Beautridge said "The Serious Crime Directorate are committed to bringing to justice those individuals and organised crime groups who are involved in this type of criminality. The supply of this quantity of drugs to the communities of Essex would have presented a very significant risk to public safety and will not be tolerated."

THE family of a woman who has been missing since Friday afternoon are becoming increasingly concerned.
Sharifah Winnett, aged 32, who suffers from depression, was last seen at about 1pm on February 22 in Romford town centre wearing a brown fur coat, blue jeans, black hat and sunglasses.

Relatives and friends are worried about her present state of mind. She is around 5ft 4ins tall, slim, with long dark hair and brown eyes.

Anyone who has seen Sharifah, or knows of her whereabouts, should call Havering Police on 101 quoting CAD reference 6398/22Feb. Alternatively call the charity Missing People on 116 000.

POLICE are appealing for witnesses after a woman was sexually assaulted at a bus stop in Basildon.
The woman in her early 20s was very shocked after the incident in Durham Road, close to the junction with Rowenhall, at 6.55am on February 20, when a man touched her inappropriately.
The suspect is white, in his late 40s to early 50s, about 5ft 8ins tall and of large build with a big stomach. He had grey hair, which was balding on top with grey stubble on his face. He was wearing an old black fleece with a plain white T- shirt underneath, dark washed out trousers, black laced boot trainers, and he smelt strongly of aftershave.
Anyone with any information should call Pc Clare HENSON at Basildon police station on 101 or via Crimestoppers.
 

POLICE have issued a CCTV photo of a man wanted for questioning in connection with a theft of items from the Co Operative store in St Peter's Terrace, Wickford, at 3.45pm on February 14. 

Anyone who recognises the man is asked to contact PC Kevin Bingham at Basildon Retail Crime unit on 101.

POLICE have issued a CCTV photo of a man wanted for questioning in connection with a theft of items from the Co Operative store in St Peter's Terrace, Wickford, at 3.45pm on February 14. 

Anyone who recognises the man is asked to contact PC Kevin Bingham at Basildon Retail Crime unit on 101.

A DRIVER was made to swerve when a piece of wood was dropped from a footbridge over the A120.

The woman thought she saw a child or youth drop the small item around 2:30pm on February 23 near the B1417 Rayne Road.

Police in Braintree are investigating and are asking parents to ensure that it is not their children committing this dangerous act. 

Officers immediately searched the area, using both local officers and the force helicopter but no one was found. 

Ch Insp Rachel Nolan said: "This is serious, and it is fortunate that this incident did not result in any injuries.

"These children may think it is just a game but it is very stupid and dangerous. 

"I would ask parents to please talk to your children and make sure that it is not them committing this offence." 

Anyone with information is asked to contact police at Braintree police station on 101.

MORE than 40 per cent of incapacity benefit claimants in the borough are actually fit to work, new figures have revealed.

A total of 42 per cent of claimants have been reassessed as fit for work, leaving Brentwood with the sixth highest proportion of people who have lost their benefit in the country.

The number of people falsely claiming they cannot work on health grounds has remained high since the reassessment process started in 2010.

Last year it was revealed that 55 per cent of Brentwood benefit claimants – the highest in the country at that point – were found fit for work.

The most recent figures may represent people who have appealed against their reclassification.

Those found fit for work will no longer be eligible for ongoing sickness benefit and will be moved on to Jobseekers' Allowance. They will have to prove they are actively looking for work or face losing their entitlement.

The statistics were revealed last week by the Department for Work and Pensions, which has been reassessing claimants to see if they qualify for Employment and Support Allowance, the replacement for incapacity benefit.

Brentwood was rated by the Halifax in its annual Quality of Life Survey as the fifth best place to live in the UK in December, up from 13th the year before.

Elsewhere in Essex, 41 per cent of claimants in Maldon were found fit for work, in Braintree the figure was 38 and in Basildon it was 35 per cent.

The figures show that the Orkney and Shetland Islands have the fewest number of people falsely claiming benefits. South Derbyshire has the highest.

Cllr Louise McKinlay, Tory leader of Brentwood Borough Council, said: "The number of people on incapacity benefit has increased massively over the last few years and you have to question whether the old rules were as stringent as they should have been.

"It's vital that any assessment is fair and focuses on each individual case but ultimately, supporting people back to work is better for all concerned."

Labour group leader Cllr Mike Le-Surf said: "I hope that the assessments are being carried out properly. I understand that more than 40 per cent of people who had appealed have had the initial decision overturned.

"I do hope people have been taken off benefits for the right reasons."

A CHARITY in Hutton that helps people in need to get back on their feet is struggling to operate because of the speed of its broadband service.

The Lighthouse Project, which is based at the industrial estate in Tallon Road, supplies recycled furniture and household items to the homeless and hard-up.

Yet for the past three years, the organisation has not been able to send out hundreds of refurbished second-hand computers at knock-down prices to those that need them most – because its BT broadband service is "too slow".

Although 170 PCs have been re-distributed for the benefit of schools, charities, community groups, voluntary organisations and individuals, Lighthouse was hoping to have issued around 1,000 since 2009.

Michael Kushin, who has been the operations/IT manager at the charity for almost four years, said he is "very frustrated" with its internet speed which, at best, operates at just 1Mb per second.

The 55-year-old, who has worked with computers for 30 years, said the broadband service he can receive is no quicker than when the internet was first launched.

He added: "I wanted to throw my machine out of the window the other day because it took me four-and-a-half hours to place an order because it kept falling over – it should have taken 15 minutes.

"Across the whole group, it's just a huge waste of everyone's time."

Lighthouse – which was founded in 1994 and now has 22 staff and 70 volunteers at Hutton – opened a second centre in Rayleigh last June and is to launch a third in the next few weeks in Epping.

It was hoped that Hutton could act as a headquarters for all three, storing the group's stockholding and inventory information, but the lack of broadband speed has put paid to that.

Instead, a further £6,000 of the charity's much-needed funds has been spent on software to manage that side of the charity in each centre.

Yet having tried to convince BT for three years that he needs faster broadband, he believes the firm is not interested in helping them.

He added: "To add insult to injury we received a communication in November from BT informing us that Infinity would be available to us in the near future with speeds of 40Mb, only to receive a phone call yesterday (February 12) from the BT representative, who recently visited us and many of the businesses on the estate, telling us that the communication was incorrect and BT has no immediate plans to upgrade our service.

"When pushed on what this meant he said at least a year and possibly as long as two years."

A BT spokesman said: "We have looked into this and confirmed that there is no fault on the line, and are of course sorry that they were given the wrong information with regards to broadband currently available.

"We have investigated thoroughly and have got this line working at the best speed available on it. We will be in contact direct to discuss this issue.

"This premises is a long distance from the exchange that serves them.

"The signals used by ADSL broadband lose strength over distance so the further you are from an exchange, the less speed you get.

"We're doing more than any other company to create new technologies which will increase broadband speeds over longer distances."

A WICKFORD secondary school is one of the top 100 improving schools in the UK following strong exam results and a glowing Ofsted report.

Beauchamps High School made the list after the progress of its students moving from Key Stage 2 to GCSE improved.

This comes on top of record-breaking GSCE results last summer and a successful interim Ofsted inspection.

Education minister David Laws wrote to the school to congratulate staff, governors and students for their hard work in continuing the drive towards a higher standard of education.

Last year, 74 per cent of pupils at the school achieved five GCSEs graded A* to C, including English and Maths.

Head teacher Bob Hodges told the Gazette: "The letter came out of the blue and we were very proud to receive such excellent news.

"It was a nice touch that David Laws had signed the letter himself – it made the news all the more meaningful."

The school, located in Beauchamps Drive, received a second letter earlier this month following an interim Ofsted inspection.

The letter, from Sir Michael Wilshaw, Her Majesty's Chief Inspector, informed them that the assessment showed "sustained high performance".

As a consequence, the school will not be subjected to a full Ofsted inspection any earlier than summer next year.

Mr Hodges said: "It is a testimony to, and recognition of, all the hard work of our staff, governors and students, and the support the school receives from parents.

"It shows that the close monitoring and tracking of every student carried out by the school has a positive impact on the outcomes for the students."

He added: "The school was highly gratified to receive such excellent news from Sir Michael Wilshaw and David Laws.

"We received the two letters in consecutive weeks and it was absolutely superb to be able to tell the staff and pupils of our success.

"The news has created further buzz and engagement amongst our team."

The school is now preparing for its half-term plans, which include a visit to Vienna in Austria for the psychology students.