Claim commuters '˜harassed'

A Sleaford commuter says passengers on the Sleaford to Grantham trains are being harassed by a group of 'yobbish' teens from a Sleaford school. EMN-161212-132054001

Rebecca Jackson, a 24-year-old marketing executive from Bingham, travels by rail to work in Sleaford every day and has told The Standard she and other commuters have been plagued by rowdy behaviour at Sleaford Railway Station and on the train by a group of unidentified teenage boys from St George’s Academy.

Miss Jackson said: “Due to the fact that my twice daily train journeys to and from work (Interflora, Sleaford) are shared with the same group of rowdy, inconsiderate, and quite simply, appallingly behaved students, I was left with no other choice but to contact the school.”

She has made a complaint to East Midlands Trains and the matter has also been reported to the police.

She described the behaviour as ‘mob mentality’, claiming they were throwing around obnoxious comments about her appearance, physically approaching her and blocking the aisles, chanting ‘jump, jump, jump’ as the train approaches the station and filming her on their phones.

Although apparently their prime target, Miss Jackson added: “I am not the only commuter who experiences their truly appalling, yobbish behaviour.

“I’m sick of being followed onto the train, shouted and leered at by a group of youths who seemingly consider themselves untouchable. They’re aggressive and intimidating and as a young woman on a train, I should not have to deal with it.”

St George’s principal, Wayne Birks said: “St George’s Academy takes the behaviour of its students both on and off campus very seriously and we are sorry if a handful of our students have let us and themselves down at the railway station.

“As soon as we received a complaint from a member of the public we contacted the police in order to determine the identity of those involved so we could take immediate action.

“Two of my vice-principals are also visiting the railway station at the end of school to ensure students behave as we would expect.”

Inspector Andrew Pickles from British Transport Police said: “We are working closely with East Midlands Trains and local schools to address the issue.

“We will be increasing patrols on trains but it is vital that we build up an accurate picture of what is taking place, so if you have witnessed any school pupils acting in an anti-social manner please contact us on 0800 405040 or text 61016.”