FURTHER to Mrs Watkins's letter "Playing is not anti-social", I too was incensed at the wording in the Crime Services Agency booklet which listed "children playing" alongside "power tools" and "loud music" as examples of anti-social behaviour in Wyre Forest.

Oh dear. I understood "children playing" to be of paramount importance in the development of their inter-personal and communicative skills.

I thought that to leave their PlayStations and venture outside would be of considerable benefit, not only to their health, but to environmental awareness and self-confidence.

It appears I am wrong. Now, instead of enjoying the sound of their laughter and remembering our own sweet taste of a little bit of freedom, there will be many a miserable neighbour gleefully reaching for the telephone, to report the first ball that should stray over their fence, or the first small "soldier" who might make the mistake of thinking that the bush would make a wonderful hide-out.

I just hope that most people will have the sense and patience to allow for a bit of shouting/running/hiding - all perfectly normal activities, not criminal offences - but I fear that the more vindictive curtain-twitchers out there will now have unjust reason to treat children as criminals, and try to put a stop to many a happy, innocent and imaginative afternoon's play.

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