The safety of young wizards and witches is a topic of great concern to our entire community. And yet for years rumors of lax standards at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry have persisted, and gone largely unchecked. Past instances have seen students injured while attending classes, such as in Care of Magical Creatures while under the watch of Rebeus Hagrid - who continues to be listed as missing, though rumors of the giant uprising have led many to speculate that the half-giant returned to his own kind. Which raises, again, the question of hiring dark creatures to hold positions of such prominence.
And in a new and far more severe development, a student - Daphne Greengrass - was seriously injured and assaulted by the giant squid kept in Hogwarts lake. The squid was added to the school for unknown reasons by a previous Headmaster, and has, since the time of its arrival, grown to nearly three times its initial size. The squid attacked Miss Greengrass without provocation, and by all reports nearly drowned her.
Many students expressed their lack of surprise at this development. "It's hardly a shock," Draco Malfoy, a seventh year Slytherin, tells us. "There's dangers all over the school and unless you're one of administrations favorites, no one particularly cares if you're injured by them." Mr. Malfoy has personal experience with these matters, as he received a disfiguring injury years ago, while just a third year, from an altercation with a dangerous Hippogriff students were forced to interact with during their lessons. Mr. Malfoy still wears the scars of his encounter.
The wildlife is not the only danger students face while attempting to learn. A rare Whomping Willow, classified as a danger to any humanoid life form, sits in the grounds with easy access to any student who wanders to far, and more than a few have ended with broken bones. In addition the school itself, which houses a Poltergeist, amongst other unpredictable entities, has proved a less than safe haven, weathering invasions by trolls, werewolves, and various other creatures in recent years.
Finally though, it seems someone is taking note, and fighting to make a change. In the wake of Miss Greengrass' incident, her parents filed a petition with the Ministry to have the squid removed from school grounds. Backed by several prominent members of the wizarding community as well as the Wizengamot, the petition was voted on this morning and it was agreed by an unspecified margin that the squid would be removed from Hogwarts later this week and transferred to a less dangerous location.
The Greengrass family could not be reached for comment, but the Prophet is sure that they'll rest easier knowing their daughter is safe from squid tentacles in the future. Undisclosed sources at the Ministry tell us that this is just the first of several changes planned for Hogwarts that will bring up the lax safety standards of the school. "It's high time for some changes," they told us. We can't help but agree, and support the removal of this and all other dangerous and dark creatures.