Students fined thousands for hosting parties amid lockdown

TWO Derby university students who hosted illegal lockdown parties have been named and made to pay out a combined total of £5,000.

Javarny Ashley, 20, of Wardwick, Derby must pay out £2,480 after hosting a party of more than 90 people at his property on December 6.

Meanwhile, Abdullahi Halilu, 20, of Gower Street, Derby, was ordered to pay the same fine and court costs after hosting a party of more than 50 people at his flat on December 13.

At the time, Derbyshire was in Tier 3 restrictions, with bans on the mixing of households indoors, or most outdoor places, apart from where families formed a support bubble.

Derbyshire police confirmed at the time of the incidents that both men were University of Derby students and both were handed the county’s first maximum £10,000 Covid fines.

Both Ashley and Halilu had their fines reduced at their eventual court hearings, held behind closed doors in a process called the Single Justice Procedure, held on June 9.

This appears to be due to their own personal financial means. Court fines are altered, within reason, to match the financial means of the defendant so each fine is proportional to the person involved – with larger payouts reserved for those with the means to pay them.

The police report for Ashley says he hosted a party involving more than 90 people at his property “which was in clear breach of Covid restrictions and a threat to public health”.

Ashley had initially provided false details to the police who attended his property on the night, arriving at 1.15am, the report says.

The report for Halilu details that police arrived at his Gower Street flat at 2am with more than 50 people said to be in attendance.

Halilu told police: “I only invited a group of 10 to 15 friends for a mini link-up and there was a DJ who turned up the music and then strangers were coming in. I was trying to get people to leave.”

At a closed-doors hearing on June 9 at Southern Derbyshire Magistrates’ Court, Ashley was made to pay a total of £2,480, of which £2,200 was a fine, £190 was a victim surcharge and £90 was for court costs.

A private hearing on the same day, during the same rapid-fire session, saw Halilu handed the same costs.

At the time of the initial fines, Emlyn Richards, Detective Chief Inspector, said the incidents were “really disappointing and very disheartening”.

Professor Kathryn Mitchell, the university’s vice-chancellor, had said she was “extremely disappointed” in the “unacceptable behaviour” of the two students.

A FIRM of funeral directors with branches in the area has created an illustrated activity book to support children and young people who have lost a loved one.

A counsellor from Wathall’s, a family-run firm, worked with a freelance illustrator to create the book, entitled “Missing Someone Special – working your way through loss”.

Wathall bereavement support coordinator and qualified counsellor Fay Bloor and University of Derby graduate Michael Ashley’s book was published as part of the Wathall’s Dandelions Bereavement Support service and gently explains practical things such as what happens at both burial and cremation services as well as highlighting the importance of sharing emotions following a bereavement.

There is also space for children to write their happy memories of their lost loved one and express their feelings through words and pictures.

Fay said: “We hope the children’s activity book and the booklet will be useful aides for families during what is a particularly difficult time in all their lives having lost a loved one. Adults often feel like they must protect children from the harsh reality of death and are obviously mourning a loss themselves. However, avoiding the discussions can cause confusion and anxiety for the child.

“The reality is that children are extremely resilient and can deal with the truth, if it is explained to them carefully in an age-appropriate way.

“The activity book is designed to gently explain what has happened and the kind of words and phrases that they have perhaps heard people using. It also highlights the range of emotions they may be feeling, from anger to guilt, and encourages them to express these in the book.

“The booklet for adults addresses subjects such as breaking bad news about death in a straightforward and honest way; what language to avoid; involvement in funeral arrangements; common reactions and suggestio ns for working through grief as a family.”

The activity book costs £12.99 and at least £1 from each sale will go to Treetops Hospice and will put towards their Children’s Bereavement Service. It is accompanied by a booklet and a blog, both also written by Fay Bloor, aimed at adults which focus on how to support children through bereavement.

TWENTY schools in Staffordshire have been spending more money than they have coming in - and their combined deficit tops £2 million.

Across the country, increasing numbers of schools were already struggling to make budgets stretch before the pandemic.

Teaching unions have warned extra costs have negated much of this year’s funding increase. They say promised extra money is not enough to address what they claim to be long-term underfunding.

The figures include primary and secondary schools, as well as special schools, nurseries and pupil referral units. However, they do not include academies.

Overall, the 23 schools in Staffordshire reported a combined deficit of £2.4 million in 2019/20, according to the Department for Education (DFE) figures. The average deficit per school in 2019/20 was £102,835.

The primary and secondary schools in Staffordshire running a deficit in 2019/20 are:

King Edward VI High School, Stafford, Secondary, -£532,767

■■Flash Ley Primary School, Stafford, Primary, -£429,237

■■The King’s Cofe (VA) School, Kidsgrove, Secondary, -£292,517

■■Stafford Manor High School, Secondary, -£149,668

■■St Paul’s Cofe (C) Primary School, Stafford, Primary, -£140,798

■■King Edward VI School, Lichfield, Secondary, -£134,268

■■The Henry Prince Cofe (C) First School, Mayfield (now closed), Primary, -£131,673

■■Squirrel Hayes First School, Biddulph, Primary, -£131,438

■■Fulfen Primary School, Burntwood, Primary, -£63,466

■■St Peter’s Cofe (VC) First School, Marchington, Primary, -£37,862

■■Western Springs Primary School, Rugeley, Primary, -£37,137

■■Barlaston Cofe (C) First School, Primary, -£36,206

■■Cooper Perry Primary School, Sieghford, Primary, Staffordshire, -£35,906

■■Abbot Beyne School, Burton, Secondary, -£30,163

■■West Hill Primary School, Hednesford, Primary, -£23,179

■■Highfields Primary School, Burntwood, Primary, -£21,702

■■St Leonard’s Cofe (VA) First School, Ipstones, Primary, -£4,272

■■Holy Trinity Cofe (C) Primary School, Burton, Primary, -£3,970

■■St Stephen’s Primary School, Fradley, Primary, -£2,937

■■Hob Hill Ce/methodist (VC) Primary School, Brereton, Primary, -£1,966

Each school in the area has been approached for comment.