I DON’T know what readers felt when they read of the mindless destruction of the Susan Isaacs Nursery’s outdoor classroom, and the slaughter of the amphibian creatures in the ponds, but I am afraid that my first reaction is a plea to bring back the birch, despite what do-gooders like Mr Peter Johnston would say to the contrary.

In the Isle of Man, the birch was still used until very recently when a directive from the precious EU banned it.

According to a couple I spoke to from that island, within a very short time the vandalism had started, because the vandals would have nothing to fear if caught apart from fines and ASBOs, which I don’t think are all that effective.

Of course, a lot of the trouble is that there is a lack of parental control or interest in youngsters today, and it is true that the devil finds work for idle hands to do.

P H Hayworth Mornington Road Bolton