Observer opinion: Community spirit will bring help to vulnerable

Not now. While there will almost certainly be hundreds of children celebrating some unexpected days of school and heading to the nearest hill, sleigh in hand, for many people here in Hastings this week’s snow has spelled nothing but misery.

Be it the train passengers who suffered a 12 hour journey back from London (page two), or the town’s many elderly and vulnerable people who have found themselves trapped in their own homes, the weather has been snow joke.

And that is not even taking into account the local businesses and self employed people who will have been hit by at least two days without work at a time when every penny counts.

But, while East Sussex County Council and rail operator Southeastern have struggled (again) to cope with the demands, the Arctic conditions give local people yet another chance to show their community spirit.

There are nearly 20,000 pensioners living in Hastings and many more vulnerable people. They need their friends, family and neighbours now more than ever.

So if you have an elderly person living nearby, call round and make sure they are ok. With roads inaccesible and home visits from carers almost impossible, the generosity of locals is some people’s only lifeline.

IN the aftermath of the appalling killing of Qatari student Mohammed al-Majed in 2008, the national media could not wait to brand Hastings as a racist town. Never mind the fact that the man jailed for his manslaughter came from south London - that was a detail that got in the way of a powerful headline.

Of course anyone who lives here knows that this is nonsense - there is an unsavoury element in any town but Hastings and St Leonards has a diverse, tolerant and inclusive society and groups across town like the interfaith forum, the Gensing and Central St Leonards forum and the Hastings Intercultural Organisation have worked tirelessly to build even more bridges.

Against this background, the conviction of Nazi obsessed Steffan Luff (page nine) is to be welcomed. Here was a man who not only put offensive stickers around the town, but took his vile views one stage further and abused people face-to-face.

He might count himself lucky but a suspended prison sentence is no let-off and it sends a message that there is no place for this kind of behaviour.

THE story of Brett and Elizabeth Johnson’s scuppered motorbike adventure is a real shame (page three). These two childhood sweethearts are expecting their first child in the summer and wanted to make the most of their last months of total freedom. Now a callous thief has written off their bike, and their dream. But Christmas is a magical time and maybe, just maybe, there is someone out there who can ride to their rescue.