Asda have recalled a range of baby food from supermarket shelves following the discovery of a piece of plastic in a kids’ ready meal.

The removal from shelves of the beef and sweet potato stew, from its Little Angels range, comes just a few days after Waitrose urgently recalled four of its luxury chocolate bars over fears they may have also contained plastic.

The supermarket giant has asked customers to return any meals which have a best-before date of September 10, 2018.

Shoppers can obtain a full refund for the £1.35 item cost. A receipt is not required.

A spokesperson for Asda said: “We are very sorry for any inconvenience caused. If you would like any further information please contact 0800 952 0101.

Young people have always explored their sexuality and shared these experiences with others.

By Raymond Arthur, Northumbria University

This article originally appeared in The Conversation

Last year a report from the NSPCC showed that one in seven (approximately 14%) young people in the UK have taken a naked or semi-naked picture of themselves. A lot of these young people will then go on to share these images with someone they know.

These figures, suggest that sharing self-generated sexual images has become just another way for young people to express their sexual selves. It’s all part of growing up – sexting is just a different approach to more traditional forms of sexual self expression.

But, for some young people, sexting can lead to criminal prosecution along with classification as a sex offender. This is because sending a naked image of yourself in a text, or on social media, when you’re below the age of 18 is technically illegal. The law doesn’t make any exception for young people creating, possessing or sharing such material themselves. It counts as an offence of distributing an indecent image of a child and meets the legal definition of child pornography.

Recent figures from Scotland on the issue show that the number of children reported to prosecutors for sexual offences has risen by 21% in four years – with sexting being one of the main reasons for the increase. And this year alone, across the UK the police have investigated thousands of children for sexting including a five-year-old boy in County Durham, and a 10-year-old boy who was cautioned by Northumbria Police.

Sexual offences

A stark illustration of how cruel the criminal law has become in this regard is illustrated by the example of 12 year old girl in the south of England who was being groomed online by a paedophile. The girl was pressured to send him topless photos. The paedophile cannot be found as he was using an anonymous Instagram account. But the police have told the girl that she may face criminal charges and a criminal record for creating and sharing explicit images of a child despite the fact she has been the victim of grooming.

In this way, the very laws which were intended to protect children from abuse and exploitation are now being used to punish children. So, although it is of course critical to have social and legal regulations to protect children from harm and exploitation, criminalising consensual sexting among young people loses sight of children’s best interests.

Even if no formal action is taken by the police, any investigation will be recorded on the young person’s criminal record – which may well be disclosed at a later date. This could then affect future access to education, employment, travel and housing – among a whole host of other things.

Self expression

All of these reports of increases in sexual offences among children have been accompanied by a cry for better sex education on both the laws on sexual behaviour, but also on topics like sexting and pornography. On top of this, what is actually needed is a greater understanding of young people’s lives and experiences.

For now at least, sexting is here to stay. So rather than demonising and criminalising children’s behaviour – which forms a natural part of self expression – the law needs to be updated. Because technically even though the age of consent is 16, the age for distributing indecent images is 18. So although 17 year-olds can legally have sex, they cannot legally send a naked image

It is clear then that consensual youth sexting should be treated as a separate and distinct behaviour from child pornography. Young people should not be categorised as “producers” and “distributors” of their own pornography. Instead, young people should be free to express their sexual selves as they desire.

A window manufacturer has issued a warning over a range of its products which may be prone to spontaneously shattering

The Velux windows, containing a specific type of small pane and sold between 1997 and 2003, have been found to have the potential to unexpectedly break, with the possibility of glass fragments falling.

Cold temperature is a known factor in increasing the risk of breakage and affected customers are advised to avoid opening their window if the weather is unusually cold.

Customers who have experienced a pane breakage or are concerned that they have a window that may be affected by the product warning are asked to contact Velux immediately with the approximate size and age of the window.

The windows which could potentially affected are 39 cm (15.5 in) or less wide. Anyone having a window of this size should follow the instructions at http://velux-pw.velux.co.uk/ and once they have obtained the window’s pane code, call 0800 980 7030 or fill in the contact form (http://www.velux.co.uk/help-and-advice/product-pane-warning), where service provider Glassolutions will deal with the query.

Glazing that is subject to this product warning will be replaced free of charge regardless of the product being out with the 10 year guarantee period.

A celebration and awards event has taken place to highlight the work and achievements of Central Bedfordshire Council’s foster carers – with one of the top accolades going to a Leighton Buzzard university student.

The Celebration of Fostering event was held at Woburn Safari Park and saw 70 foster carers and their families come together with council staff and elected members to celebrate the valuable work they do.

There were five individual awards handed out to those who have gone above and beyond for the children they have welcomed into their homes.

This included university student Ryan Savic, of Leighton Buzzard, who received the Special Sons and Daughters Award for helping and supporting his mother during a difficult year and for warmly welcoming the girl they are fostering into the family.

Long-service awards were presented to 15 foster carers and couples who have clocked up an amazing 120 years’ service between them, including Angela and Simon Ellis of Leighton Buzzard.

Councillor Carole Hegley, Executive Member for Social Care and Housing, was among those to present the awards.

She said: “We had an amazing 41 nominations for awards this year and it wasn’t an easy job to pick a winner in each category.

“All of our foster carers deserve massive thanks and praise for the work which they do with the children in their care. These are children who, for whatever reason, haven’t had the easiest start in life but we have had just a few examples of how our foster carers’ amazing work and dedication help these children to go on and accomplish so much.

“If that has inspired you and you feel you could help to give a child or children a second chance in life then please get in touch with our fostering team, as they’d love to hear from you.”

If you would like more information or an informal chat about fostering, call the Central Bedfordshire Fostering team on 0300 300 8181 or email fostering@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk

Two fly tippers have been fined over £2,600 after both were caught on Central Bedfordshire Council’s CCTV cameras.

Both offenders were caught in separate incidents involving fly tipping at the now closed recycling area off of Houghton Regis High Street; despite there being two signs at the location stating fly tipping is an offence and that CCTV was in operation. Both offenders attended Luton Magistrates Court earlier this week and both pleaded guilty to fly-tipping.

Michal Zareba, of Alsop Close, Houghton Regis, was caught fly tipping rubble, boxes and bags on Tuesday 2 May 2017. He was fined £740, ordered to pay full prosecution costs of £1059.00 and a victim’s surcharge of £74, totalling nearly £1,900.

On Sunday 11 June 2017, Amy Parker of Union Street, Dunstable and her vehicle passenger were caught throwing items, including a TV, from her car onto the floor. Parker was fined £723, ordered to pay £100 towards prosecution costs and £38 victim surcharge, totalling £861.

Councillor Budge Wells, Executive Member for Corporate Resources, said: “These cases are a great result. They demonstrate the value of our investment in CCTV and how these cameras help reduce crime, nuisance and anti-social behaviour, and assist in securing arrests and prosecutions.

“Our CCTV cameras assist with our zero-tolerance attitude toward fly-tipping in Central Bedfordshire. Our Environmental Protection, CCTV, Waste and Legal teams work relentlessly to ensure fly tippers are brought to justice.

“We want Central Bedfordshire to remain a great place to live and work. Failure to properly dispose of any type of waste is simply not acceptable, and we will take action against anyone caught - regardless of the type or quantity of discarded waste.”

Incidents of fly-tipping should be reported to customer services on 0300 300 8302 or by email at customers@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk

Creating a new UK record, 505 fright lovers howled their way into the records books on Saturday at The Howl Scream Park at Mead Open Farm.

Launching their 2017 season of 13 nights of fright, the record breakers smashed the previous record of 464 – which had been set at the Billington venue two years ago.

Whipping the crowd into a frenzy, Grandma Lycanthrope (one of the street theatre characters) introduced the crowd to all of the creatures from The Howl’s five haunts, before leading the crowd’s howl; lasting a full 25 seconds.

Full of frightful fun and screams, The Howl Scream Park is held after dark for 13 nights from October 7-31 and acts as Mead Open Farm’s adult Hallowe’en event.

Matt Heast, The Howl’s owner, said: “We are thrilled to break the record this year. It was an impressive start to The Howl’s 2017 season and the atmosphere on the first night has been truly fantastic. We can’t wait for the other nights.”

Throughout the 13 thrilling nights of fright you can explore five incredible haunts full of live, terrifying creatures.

From the death-defying Shed of Dread to the nightmare inducing Toppers Twister (a must for clown lovers!) and the terrifying Squealers Yard there’s something for every adrenaline junkie.

Not feeling brave? Fear not! Join in with amazing street entertainment, try fabulous food and grab a pint of Dutch courage in the Hearse and Hound bar.

For best value, fright lovers are encouraged to buy in advance at www.thehowl.co.uk

Ivinghoe residents have been told not to worry if they hear gun shots coming from their beacon beauty spot this week, as a new BBC thriller is being filmed!

The BBC America drama is in-production by Sid Gentle Films Ltd, who are based in London, and Beacon Road is closed today from 6am - 8pm, so the company can shoot their footage around the Ashridge Estate.

It is suspected that the filming is for new BBC America ‘cat and mouse’ drama, Killing Eve, starring Sandra Oh, who plays a security services operative who fantasises about being a spy, and Jodie Comer, who plays the killer.

The drama is listed on the company’s website as being ‘in-production’, so residents suspect that this week’s filming is likely to be for the Oh and Comer thriller.

Bridget Knight, Ivinghoe Parish Council clerk, said: “We’ve been told about gun shots as part of the filming, so I imagine it is something that doesn’t sound like a nice family film!”

On The Parish Council website, Chrissy Hardy, Ashridge Estate ranger, wrote: “The film company has requested a road closure of the Beacon Road from Bucks County Council for October 9.

“There will also be a number of gun shots fired over the week. This is all highly controlled there will be an armourer on set at all times.

“The police are aware and we will have an NT representative on set at all times when they are filming. The gun shot may be heard in the local area.

“Filming will be from approximately 8am until 7pm.”

The countryside beauty spot has been a popular film location in the past. In 2012 it was used for Maleficent and in 2014 it was selected for a Santander TV advert, featuring Olympic golden girl Jessica Ennis-Hill.

Feature films, such as Quatermass 2, Batman Begins and The Dirty Dozen have also been shot at Ivinghoe Beacon.

Today’s road closure is for Beacon Road, between the B489 Icknield Way and Ringshall.

The diversion is via Edlesborough and Dagnall.

The LBO has contacted Sid Gentle Films Ltd and Buckinghamshire County Council for comments.

Luke Marsh scored the only goal of the game as Leighton Town eat Colney Heath 1-0 to climb to seventh in SSML Premier Division.

Marsh's goal early in the second half ensured Town bounced back from defeat in their last league outing against Edware last week, but the bottom club didn't make life easy for the Reds.

On a hard and bobbling pitch, neither side were able to play great football. Leighton started the better sides, putting some good early pressure on the visitors and had an early half chance after Lewis McBride’s early corner was nearly met by Marsh.

Leighton were looking good from set pieces in this early stage of the game and Kai Ashley made a pin point pass to Dave Murphy from a free-kick but he couldn’t direct his header on target and it sailed harmlessly wide.

For the Reds it was just a case of lacking the final killer touch as both Alex O’Brien and Carl Tappin had good chances. First it was O’Brien striking a venomous shot not too far over the bar before Tappin had a better option McBride pulling back a teasing ball, all Tappin could do was blast it over the bar.

Whilst at times the first half lacked quality, the visitors also had some good chances. Isi Rotini played a lovely cross to Lee Armit who skewed his shot just past the post. Ty Ward then had a good chance as he was allowed to run at the Leighton defence but Tom Wyant was more than equal to what was a tame effort in the end.

It was the hosts that really should have gone ahead before half time after some lovely hold up play from Smith, he played a lovely ball to O’Brien who just struck his shot past the post. Leighton then hit the post from a cross it came it to Smith who could’ve shot but was tackled.

However the hosts did get an opener early into the second half. It started with a lovely ball by James Towell to O’Brien he played it across goal which caused confusion between the Colney Heath back line as a defender headed it back to Harry Smart he snatched it enabling Luke Marsh to slot home into an empty net.

The goal woke the visitors up who were perhaps unlucky not to equalise after Armit chipped Wyant but it just lofted past the wrong side of the post in what was an alarming wake up call for the hosts.

Leighton had to absorb some pressure late on but Wyant was up to the task as he saved a oncoming header. Sometimes though the best form defence is attack and Jakk Pursey hit an audacious long ranged effort just over the bar.

Despite this, the visitors still tried to get a goal and Towell had to make a good clearance to deny Ward. It was tense for the last few and Tom Guiney had to make a crunching tackle on Armit to deny him.

The Leighton back line held firm though and denied the proverbial kitchen sink that the visitors were trying to throw and got a hard fought three points in the process.

Thousands of people stepped back in time to the medieval age on Saturday at the town council’s Living History Day.

Leighton-Linslade Town Council organised and run the event in the High Street, for people to experience what life would have been like in a typical medieval settlement.

Music jesters, cooking and skirmishes entertained the young and old alike in the free day-long event.

Adults had the chance to discover about health and disease from the barber surgeon and the medieval moneyer and the medieval forge showed off their skills and gave children the opportunity to strike their own coin and spin their own yarn.

Ben Bodsworth, Leighton-Linslade Town Council event organiser, felt the event was a huge success stating that the High Street was “buzzing”.

The medieval encampment, the charter market, the pop-up market (which takes place the first Saturday of the month) and the Love Your Local Business Event all added to the vibrant atmosphere on the day.

>What did you think of the event? Email news@lbobserver.co.uk
> See more photos in the October 10 editionof the LBO.

Jocelyn Ulyett will be on the plane to Australia after being named in the England team for the Commonwealth Games next year.

The 22-year-old from Leighton Buzzard swam a season’s best at the British Swimming Championships 2017, the fastest 200m breaststroke time in the Commonwealth this year.

This time secured her first British title and earned her a spot on the World Championships team in Budapest. Although it was her first senior international appearance, Ulyett secured a top 10 finish in the 200m butterfly.

Commenting on her selection, Ulyett, who trains at Loughborough University, said: “It is extremely exciting to be selected to compete for Team England.

“I feel very proud to have a chance to represent my country at the Commonwealth Games.

“Competing at the Games will be a great experience for me to learn more about myself in that kind of environment. I’m eager to figure out how to optimise the use of the environment to let me race the best I can.”

Ulyett is one of 15 athletes to be announced by Team England following the first phase of selections by Swim England. The remaining athletes will be selected following qualification at the Swim England National Winter Championships 2017 in December.

Team Leader Grant Robins said: “This is an exciting team that has been selected for the 2018 Commonwealth Games.

“We have a wealth of experience from athletes that know what it takes to win.

“I know the team will work hard in their home programmes to be the best they can be when they step on the plane to the Gold Coast.”

Firefighters are again warning people of the dangers of kitchen fires after there were 17 in the county over the past two weeks.

On Friday at 12.18pm crews from Dunstable and Luton were called to a property in Milton Way, Houghton Regis.

Firefighters had to force entry to the property and used a thermal imaging camera and a hose reel to extinguish the fire.

The fire started after some cooking had been left unattended and caught fire.

Just after this at 1.19pm on Friday crews from Kempston and Toddington attended a care home in High Street, Ridgmont after reports of a small kitchen fire, although the fire was out on arrival Firefighters checked the area and gave fire safety advice to staff.

On Sunday crews from Kempston and Bedford were called to a fire at property in Abbott Crescent, Kempston at 8.46am. One casualty was treated by paramedics.

A flasher, believed to be in his mid to late 60s, exposed himself to passers-by at Ivinghoe Beacon.

Thames Valley Police was alerted to the incident which happened on Saturday, September 30 at about 4.30pm.

A police spokesman said “The investigation has been filed pending any further information coming to the police. However, anyone with any information relating to this is asked to call police on 101 quoting reference 43170290172.”

A car crashed into the window of a Husborne Crawley pub last Thursday, and despite being thrown off her chair, one diner still felt peckish...

On October 5, a road traffic collision involving two vehicles occurred in Mill Road at 5.15pm, causing one vehicle to smash into the front of The White Horse Pub.

Landlord, Matt Henman, 34, said: “I just heard a mighty crash. A lady (near the window) had been thrown off her chair onto the floor. She was OK, just shocked.

“She sat down on the other side of the restaurant. We asked if she still wanted her meal -which was ready - and she did! She ate it just before we were evacuated!

“I went outside to check that everyone was OK.

“The driver of the car that impacted the pub was very upset and very shaken. Both the lady inside the pub and the driver were taken to hospital as a precaution.

“The local community has been so supportive.

“We have a structural engineer visiting on Tuesday (October 10) and we hope to be open by Friday. Keep checking our Facebook page for updates.”

A Bedfordshire Police spokeswoman, said: “One of the vehicles had damaged the exterior of the White Horse pub.

“The vehicles were recovered and those involved were treated for slight injuries.

“A road closure is in place between Ridgmont roundabout and Mill Road as structural engineers ensure the safety of the scene.”

Officers are investigating the circumstances of the collision and anyone with information is urged to contact police on 101 quoting reference 300 of Thursday, October 5.

An East of England Ambulance Service spokeswoman, said: “We were called at 5.11pm yesterday (October 5) to reports of a road traffic collision on Mill Road.

“An ambulance crew was dispatched to help. At the scene they assessed a woman, believed to be in her 50s.

“The patient was taken to Bedford Hospital for further care.”

The fire service also reported a male casualty.

A Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue spokesman, said: “We were called at 17.17pm (on October 5) and sent pumps from Ampthill and Kempston and the Special Rescue Unit from Kempston.

“When we got there we didn’t need to free the male casualty from the vehicle but paramedics did take him to hospital.

“We assisted in making the scene safe and a structural engineer was called in from Central Bedfordshire Council.

“Highways Agency closed the road for a while and we didn’t leave the scene until 21.53.”

> To make a booking for when the pub reopens, email: whitehorsehc@gmail.com.

Villagers from Edlesborough, Dagnall and Northall turned out to vote in the referendum for their Neighbourhood Plan on Thursday – and gave it their overwhelming backing.

The plans are a recent government initiative giving locals a voice in how development impacts their communities.

The Edlesborough Parish Neighbourhood Plan was developed over the last two years through a democratic consultation process with the community. It limits new developments in the village until 2033, controls locations and designs for any planned building and also makes some provisions for expansion of the local school and doctor’s surgery.

The plan was approved in Thursday’s referendum by 88% of voters (866 said yes, 115 no), with an impressive turnout of 45%.

Graham Neill is a village resident and chairman of ‘Yes for Edlesborough Parish Neighbourhood Plan’, an independent group of residents who campaigned to protect the character of Edlesborough and the surrounding villages.

He said: “Of course, we know many people don’t want any new developments, so we were delighted so many people turned out to have their voices heard and that they recognised that approving the plan was the best way to prevent an unlimited number of houses being built over the coming years.”

Alan Williams, chairman of the Edlesborough Parish Council, added: “Neighbourhood plans give local communities like ours the chance to have a democratic input into new developments for years to come. The level of turnout and the size of the majority in favour of the plan show how important these issues are to people and the level of support it has from local people.

“The Edlesborough Neighbourhood Plan is now set to shape future planning decisions for years to come.”

You can see the plan at the AVDC offices, or on their website www.aylesburyvaledc.gov.uk.

History was made at the beginning of October when Buzzard Volleyball Club won their first ever game.

The newly founded team took on Welwyn Hatfield Wildcats in their first HVA approved match, and Buzzards came out on top 3-2.

The Welwyn ladies team maintained the lead for the first two sets, however, Buzzard managed to gain a number of crucial points at the end of set 3, and translate this lead into a 3-2 win.

Their next game is this weekend against Vale Vixens.

Around 1,200lbs of fish corpses were removed from a section of the Grand Union Canal at Leighton Buzzard last week in what has been described as a “level one fish kill”.

Luton Angling Club has pointed the finger at dredging carried out by the Canal & River Trust following the discovery made on Sunday, October 1 at the Grove Church section of the canal.

Steve Sharp, of the angling club, said: “Sadly overnight on Sunday 1st October there was a substantial fish kill on our Grand Union Canal controlled Grove Church section with many specimen bream, perch and carp found floating dead.

“It was soon categorised as a level 1 fish kill which is the highest it could be classed as.”

Dennis Hunt, Luton Angling Club chairman, believes the recent project to dredge the Grand Union Canal was the cause.

He said: “The Canal & River Trust have been dredging the canal, everyone knew they were doing it, there were posters up and it has been widely publicised. The consequence of that, we believe, is that it has deoxygenated the water and killed 1,200lb in weight of fish.

“They have not spoken to us, they have been clearing up the mess since last Sunday, it is confined to one stretch of the canal.

“The Trust has got a contractor in to help clear up, they have removed and disposed of over 1,200lb of corpses including carp weighing up to 20lb, bream near 5lb and perch of 3lb.

“We have had an angling licence since 1923 and this is the first time I have seen anything like this and it is due to the dredging, it deoxygenated the water and killed the fish.

“We found out on Monday afternoon when we got a call from the man from the tackle shop in Leighton Buzzard, but we believe the Canal & River Trust knew about it on Friday.

“We will be seeking compensation and restocking.”

The serious loss of fish will be fully investigated by the Canal & River Trust and the Environment Agency.

A spokesperson for The Canal & River Trust said: “I have spoken to the fisheries manager for the Canal & River Trust and at the moment we don’t know why so many fish died on the canal at Grove Church.

“Our investigations are still ongoing and we don’t want to speculate as to what may or may not have happened.”

A spokesman for the Environment Agency said: “We have been made aware of the incident, which was on private waters, and are gathering information for an investigation.”

A roofer from Billington who tried to pressurise elderly residents into paying for unnecessary work has been jailed for ten months.

Tommy Ward, of Stanbridge Road, Great Billington, admitted two counts of aggressive commercial practice and one count of fraud when he appeared at Luton Crown court on Wednesday, October 4.

The 20-year-old first came to the attention of Central Bedfordshire Council’s Trading Standards team in May 2015 when they received a complaint that he was pressuring a couple in their 80s into having roofing work carried out.

Officers immediately visited the couple in Totternhoe and engaged a chartered surveyor to inspect the work. The surveyor’s report convinced officers that further investigation was warranted.

Ward, who ran a company called Fix A Roof Ltd, tried numerous tactics to try and dissuade officers from continuing the investigation, including intimidation and getting a local radio station involved. He also continued to regularly visit and telephone the elderly couple in a bid to pressurise them into paying him money.

In January, 2016, Trading Standards received a request from Hertfordshire Police to investigate Ward after he had cold-called a couple in their 80s in Hemel Hempstead.

Officers heard how Ward had told the couple that they needed all the batons on the roof of their home renewed, as the existing ones were rotten.

But, the couple were confused because they had their roof inspected by their regular roofer, a month earlier, who had told them that it was in good condition and needed no work.

This was backed up by photographic evidence which the roofer showed officers.

The following month officers were contacted by their Trading Standards counterparts in Buckinghamshire to investigate alleged offences by Wards and his new company, Acorn Home Solutions, following a visit to a resident in their 90s.

After originally not pleading guilty to the charges against him, when he saw the volume of evidence collected against him by Trading Standards officers, Ward decided to admit two counts of aggressive commercial practice and one count of fraud.

Councillor Ian Dalgarno, executive member for community services, said: “Tommy Ward deliberately and aggressively targeted elderly and vulnerable residents to have unnecessary roofing work done.

“It is telling that he felt no choice but to plead guilty due to evidence gathered during a lengthy and comprehensive investigation by officers who at times faced intimidation serious enough to get the police involved.

“Hopefully this excellent result will act as a warning to other rogue traders that if you plan to operate in Central Bedfordshire then you will be brought to justice.”

If you suspect anyone of operating fraudulently here, call 0345 04 05 06 or email trading.standards@centralbedfordshire.gov.uk.

Warning to women after 24-year-old was left in tears following flight to Amsterdam to be reunited with her holiday lover - only to be told he’d been playing a cruel ‘pull a pig’ game.

Devastated Sophie Stevenson was stood up by cruel Dutchman Jesse Mateman, who sent her a message: “You were pigged”.

He added two pig emojis and followed up with another cutting message: “It was all a joke.”

Stunned Sophie, 24, broke down as she came to terms with her rejection alone in Amsterdam.

Sophie, who had forked out £350 for the trip, managed to reply to him: “How could you be so cruel though!” before she was blocked.

Humiliated bar supervisor Sophie, who hails from Staffordshire, had been so excited to be reunited with hunky Jesse, 21.

They had slept together after meeting in Barcelona in August, when they endured the emotional trauma of the terrifying terror attack.

Sophie, who travelled 500 miles to Holland before being brutally dumped, said: “All my friends and family cannot believe someone could be so cruel.

“It’s one thing to have a joke, but this goes well beyond banter.”

She and Jesse clicked after being caught up in the Barcelona atrocity which killed 13 people and injured 130, on August 17.

Holed up with their pals in the Pension Solarium - a one minute walk from the attack - the group struck up a relationship and Sophie and Jesse paired off.

She said: “I went to Barcelona with my friend Michelle and we arrived the day before the terror attack.

“We were staying really close to where the attack happened.

“On that day, we were so lucky, we’d just nipped out to buy some drinks and food and were sitting on the terrace when we started hearing gunshots.

“When we looked over we saw people running everywhere, it was really scary.

“The hotel was on lockdown after that and everything was shut for the day, so we stayed in and that’s when we met Jesse and his three friends.

“We were there for four more days, and felt safe while we were with them, so we hung out loads.

“It was a proper holiday romance for Jesse and me.

“We slept together in Barcelona and when I came back to the UK, we carried on talking every day.

“We talked about having a long distance relationship.”

Back in the UK, Sophie carried on messaging and calling Jesse, and they discussed giving things a go.

The pair planned for her three-day visit and she forked out £350 for a hotel and flights to see her flame.

Sophie booked a flight from Manchester to Amsterdam on September 29.

Jesse was messaging her minutes before her departure - but when she arrived in Amsterdam he ignored her calls.

She said: “We had talked about me coming to visit, and he knew I’d booked flights, that I’d paid for a hotel and he was going to meet me when I arrived at 5pm on Friday.

“We were talking up until I got on the plane. But when I arrived, he wasn’t there to pick me up.

“I called him a bunch of times, and he answer. I waited at the airport for two hours and I hadn’t heard anything, I was really starting to panic about being abandoned.

“There was a free shuttle bus to the hotel, so I made my way there and six hours later he finally messaged me - on Snapchat.”

Sophie told of her horror at reading how Jesse taunted her with pig and laughing face emoticons.

She said: “’Pulling a pig’ is where a guy tries to pull the fat ugly girl.

“When I saw that message, I wanted to be sick.

“I was in a foreign country, on my own and the guy that I liked had just abandoned me.

“I replied and said ‘how could you be so cruel’ and all he did was block me. I just couldn’t believe it.”

Sophie added: “I had no way of contacting him.

“I was petrified being in Amsterdam all on my own.

“I was so upset about what happened that I changed my flights so I could head home the next morning.

“I am furious that this happened and it’s so dangerous.

“I want people to know what happened to me so that this never happens to anyone else.”

Sophie, who has been unable to contact Jesse since the incident, said her friends and family are mortified for her.

She said: “Given the circumstance of how we met, you’d think that he’d be slightly more sensitive.

“I can’t believe this has happened to me.”

However, Mateman has claimed that the allegations are untrue. Speaking to Dutch website Metro, he said: “That whole story is... invented”, adding “It’s a witch hunt.”

Louisa Kent and Luke Atkinson were the big winners as they lifted the trophies on Leighton Buzzard Tennis Club’s finals day.

Kent saw off Zoe Crocker 6-1, 6-3 in the final to lift the Ladies’ Singles crown, while Atkinson beat Jack White 7-6, 6-3 to win the Men’s title.

Atkinson took his second title when he won the men’s doubles alongside Paul Airlie after beating Jamie Arscott-Smith and Josh Lelliott.

Claire Simons and Emma Boddington won the ladies’ doubles, while Shelley Tipping and Ross Neary won the mixed doubles.

Graham Silversides overcame Paul Oliver to win the men’s veterans title.

In the juniors, Purdey Channon beat Yasmin Sanders to win the girls’ U12s championship and Thomas Johnson saw past Edward Halsey to win the boy’s U12s crown, before pairing up with Purdey to claim the junior’s mixed doubles after a thrilling 10-8 tiebreaker in the final.

Scott Reynolds believes his Leighton Town side are the best team in the league when everything clicks.

With just two defeats from their opening nine SSML Premier Division games, Town sit seventh in the table.

But boasting wins over four of the six teams - including Tuesday night’s opponents Hoddesdon Town - ahead of them already this season, Reynolds feels his side are head-and-shoulders above the rest.

“On our day, we’re the best team in the league,” said the manager. “We’ve beaten Berkhamsted, Harpendon, Hoddesdon and Biggleswade but we’re dropping points against teams below us. We just lack a bit of consistency.

“I think we’re being targeted now by teams below us, who now looking at us as a team to stop rather than a team to chase wins against. They come now and shut up shop to make life harder for us.

“We just lack that little bit of experience in certain areas, but it will come.”

While he wants consistency from his side, one man already proving he has is striker Lorrell Smith.

The front man has eight goals from 13 appearances this season, but Reynolds admitted he is still in the market for another centre forward to bolster his attacking options.

“Lorrell is a fantastic striker, but he cannot do it alone. Another striker will help that.

“James Hatch is up there alongside him, but he can’t play as many games as he used to, so it’s important we have goals coming from all over the pitch.”

And with Smith not finding the net on Saturday, it was up to midfielder Luke Marsh to score the only goal of the game against bottom club Colney Heath at Bell Close.

With neither side able to play much decent football on the bobbling pitch, Town eventually got the breakthrough early in the second half, with Marsh on hand to tap into the empty net after confusion in the Heath penalty area.

Town take on Hoddesdon tonight (Tuesday) and travel to Tring Athletic on Saturday.