City news in 250 words

A TEACHER HAS BEEN CONVICTED OF HITTING three pupils at a school in Manchester. The teacher, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was charged after the 11-year-old reported to his mum that the teacher had slapped her son. He was found guilty of common assault on the boys, aged eight, 11 and 12. Manchester Magistrates’ Court sentenced the teacher to a community order of unpaid work.

DOCTORS HAVE CALLED FOR A MINIMUM ALCOHOL PRICE following research that found the North West has 1.33 million adults drinking at hazardous levels. The directors of public health in the region have said the rise in alcohol-related hospital admissions is “simply unsustainable” and urged Gordon Brown that “effective action” is needed to stop the sale of cheap alcohol. The doctors want to see a minimum price of 50p per-unit of alcohol.

GREATER MANCHESTER POLICE HAVE WON a data deletion appeal against a ruling that they should delete records on criminal convictions. Greater Manchester Police had the ruling overturned by the court of appeal, which said convictions, however old and minor, help the fight against crime, and as a result, the retention of that information should not be denied to the police.

A LAWYER HAS BEEN JAILED FOR FIVE MONTHS for assaulting his wife and scratching ‘bitch’ into her car. Jeffrey Sparke, 39, admitted punching his wife Jayne in the head after a drunken argument at Tameside Magistrates’ Court. The dad-of-one from Castlefield sobbed loudly when led away by court guards and said: “I'll be dead by the morning”.

This ‘N’ That wisdom: Pleasure in the job puts perfection in the work

Taken from the free calendar available at This 'n' That, Soap Street, Northern Quarter. Wisdom rating 7.5/10