Teenagers at Wood Farm in Oxford attribute their slightly disturbing behaviour to boredom and frustration which, in turn, they blame on a lack of facilities.

They grow up so quickly these days, don't they? When I was an adolescent on a council estate, our main facility was our imagination, admittedly often complemented by some rudimentary sports equipment, a bicycle, a chess set, a pack of cards, books and so on, and a little later, a radio, a record player and a tape recorder, not to mention the family TV.

We also, at least at grammar school, had this phenomenon known as homework, particularly plentiful in the express stream.

Does this still exist or are schoolkids today so brilliant, or exams so easy, that it has become superfluous?

That establishment also offered several specialised societies after classes.

At some point a boys' club came into being 'over the rec', although I never had the time or inclination for it.

DAVID DIMENT

Riverside Court, Oxford