First published on Thursday 04 January 2001:

FATHER'S BATTLE TO CLEAR HIS NAME

A COUNCIL has vowed to fight a High Court case alleging it wrongly branded a Hampshire father-of-two a child abuser.

Meanwhile, security engineer Derek Collings, 30, has received two more letters sent to his home in the wrong name of a convicted paedophile living in the community.

Mr Collings, of Gosport, has also been the victim of graffiti and vandals, who have damaged his car by slashing tyres and daubing it with the word pervert.

Despite launching a court action, suing Hampshire County Council for libel after a clerical error led him to be mistaken for the paedophile, he continues to receive post from the authority with the wrong name.

He claims his name has also been sullied to social services and education staff. Mr Collings hoped his nightmare of being named a child abuser would end when, as a last resort, he served a writ on the council to have his name cleared. But the fear of a lynch mob and further attacks continue.

He claims the mistake, allegedly by the county social services department, caused him to be banned for life from any premises run by the council where he might be in contact with children.

This has caused him loss of earnings because he works for a security systems firm fitting equipment in schools and other buildings.

His court action also claims damages for loss of earnings and alleged damage to his reputation. Mr Collings' employer is backing him and his colleagues are carrying out work in places he is banned.

Mr Collings said: "I spent months trying to sort this out. Whatever I did the county did not lift the ban, so I had to go to court. But even after all that, the letters social services send me still have the name of the paedophile on and I'm still banned.''

A county council spokesman said: "We can confirm the authority will defend the court case. But this is not anything like a conspiracy against Mr Collings. Our chief clerk is away, but we can say the problem Mr Collings has is due to a clerical error. The correspondence he has received is clearly to him and to no one else. It has his correct address.''

The spokesman said it had "very good reasons'' for banning Mr Collings from premises with children, but stressed the ban was a separate issue.

Mr Collings said: "I'll do anything to clear my name. I'm not a paedophile.''

The man Mr Collings is allegedly mixed up with is said to live in Portsmouth under a changed name.