A WEEK that began with alarm and despondency for Heath End School pupils, anticipating the trip of a lifetime to the World Cup, ended on a high note as The Herald went to press. Forty-three pupils and five members of staff, who had feared they had become victims of a ticket scam, were set to depart for Germany yesterday (Thursday) morning, their seats in the stadium for the France-Togo match assured. Alarm bells had started to ring on Monday, as it was revealed that hundreds of other schoolchildren had returned from Germany, their World Cup dream dashed. They had been told they couldn't see the promised game because their travel agent had been victim of an international ticket scam which was being investigated by the police. Heath End School, which booked months ago with the same agent, Activ4, alerted parents to potential difficulties and scheduled a meeting for Wednesday night, the eve of departure. In no time at all parents were phoning The Herald. "It isn't a cheap trip at £400 for four days and the whole point of going was to watch the World Cup. The children are devastated," said one mother. Paul Bohan, "gutted" for his football mad boys Jake, 12, and Arron, 15, was interviewed on Radio Five Live and also contacted MP Jeremy Hunt, who was soon on the case. Meanwhile, however, headteacher David Hoggins was receiving assurance from Activ4 that the school's tickets were secure. An Activ4 told The Herald that at no point had there been a problem with tickets for the coming weekend, which were coming from a different supplier to that involved last weekend.