Lawyers at heart of the matter

WHY lawyers matter will be the focus of this year’s Jean Clark Memorial Lecture at the University of Dundee’s Dalhousie Building on Thursday.

This year’s speaker, Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland Sir Declan Morgan, will be discussing the importance of the legal system and the challenges lawyers face.

Alan Page, a professor of public law, said: “The legal system is extremely topical at the moment so we are all intrigued to hear what Sir Declan Morgan has to say.”

The Jean Clark Memorial Lecture is held each year at a different location in memory of solicitor and philanthropist Jean Clark, who established and f unded t he Clark Foundation for Legal Education.

The foundation makes grants annually for undergraduates, graduates and lawyers to further their legal education.

The l ecture starts at 6pm.

Attendance is free, but registration i s required online at Dundee.ac.uk/ tickets. CCTV images of the vandalism and, below, Teri with nursery kids, from left, Zofia Kasprowicz, 2; Teana McIntosh; Jack Britton, 3; and Dylan Myles, 4.

Staff at Butterflies Nursery School on Longtown Terrace arrived yesterday morning to find their display of pumpkins had been destroyed and a fence kicked in.

They had to break the news to children as young as two that their creations had been destroyed.

Owner and manager Teri Devine said: “We ran a pumpkin competition from Monday to Friday last week.

“The parents and children carved and decorated their pumpkins together at home, then brought them in and we displayed them at the front of the building.

“Now they’ve all been smashed.

“The children have been made aware but we told them it had just been very windy.

“They’re only two and three years old so it’s really not nice having to tell them what’s happened.

“There have been tears. One little girl cried when she found out her pumpkin had been smashed.”

CCTV images show the culprits, who appear to be under the age of 16, climbing over the entrance gate of the nursery at around 6.30pm on Sunday.

The yobs are seen picking the pumpkins up, carrying them into the car park and hurling them to the ground.

Teri added that the incident was the latest in a number of issues the nursery has had with local youths since moving into the site 18 months ago.

“We’ve had bother with children around the area for a while,” she said.

“The fence has been kicked in so I’m sure that’s how they got access.

“I’ve been in touch with the police but I’m not hopeful of anyone being caught.

“Over the last six months it’s been a bit better but in the past we’ve had to tell children to leave the site because it’s private property.

“We try to build positive relationships with the children in the area and I don’t recognise any of them on the CCTV, so it could be a new group.

“The building was empty for a while so I think it was their playground before we moved in. There is a play park a minute’s walk from here. They could go there instead.”

It’s hoped the latest incident will prompt parents to quiz their children about where they’ve been, hopefully putting an end to the trouble.

Teri added: “I would urge parents to make sure they know where their children are when they go outside.

“Please have a word with them about going on to private property and causing damage and upset.”

CHILDREN at a Dundee nursery were devastated after their Halloween pumpkins were smashed up by “mindless” vandals.