Poppleton Junior School teacher David Potter was recently cleared of allegations made against him following both police and local education authority investigations but has decided that he will not return to the school. Who can blame him?

Following presumably deliberate leaks, because we believe no official announcements were ever made, the Evening Press has given allegations against Mr Potter front page publicity at least four times. Meanwhile, letters from a group of parents of his former pupils written to all concerned - the education authority, school governors, police, Crown Prosecution Service and press, expressing complete confidence in him, remained unpublished.

Recently you reported an anonymously-called meeting, at which a relatively small number of parents called for Mr Potter to be prevented from returning to school. You did not report that the proposition failed or that other parents believed that, since Mr Potter had been cleared in two investigations, no new evidence had been produced and since his accuser would not identify herself, the campaign against him was invalid and unfair.

This lack of natural justice is compounded by the fact that an accuser can damage the good name of a public figure whilst concealing her own character and motives from scrutiny by remaining anonymous, and that Mr Potter's employers having recommended his return, have then done little to support him against this campaign of vilification.

Vigilante rule has triumphed over fair play and we wonder what message this sends to the community at large and our children in particular.

For the record, Mr Potter is an excellent teacher and we have never had any reason to doubt him. He did a first class job for our children who now share our outrage at his treatment. His quiet dignity throughout makes him the only one to emerge from this with any credit and although we are sorry he feels compelled to go, we cannot blame him for turning his back on a community that has treated him so badly. We wish him well.

Andr A Scruton,

The Green, Upper Poppleton, York.