DOZENS of school pupils descended on two supermarkets and shoplifted in apparently planned raids.

Up to 80 schoolchildren, most of them wearing Highams Park School uniforms, entered Budgens, in Larkshall Road, together and began to raid the shelves of chocolate bars and sweets as scared customers looked on.

Staff, including manager Tony Ayodele, managed to get the children to leave, but not before dozens of items had been stolen.

He said: "We usually have small groups of schoolchildren in the store and it is not a problem but I have never saw such a crowd of pupils before, it was obviously planned."

Mr Ayodele said he does not want to prosecute the children, but has implemented a ban on large groups of children entering the store.

He said: "Highams Park School is a reputable school, I think this was a few bad kids."

Pupils also entered Costcutter, in nearby Hale End Road.

Manager Jalil Quereshi, said: "I have never seen 80 kids like that before, they came in and the whole shop was filled with children, everybody was shocked and did not know what to do.

"Some of the children were throwing food at us."

PC James Fitzgerald said: "We are working to identify the individuals involved and they will be dealt with appropriately."

Highams Park School headteacher Anthony Perrett would not comment on the shoplifting, which happened at about 3.30pm on June 10.