A schoolfriend of hammer attack victim, Henry Webster, has told a judge how pupils at Ridgeway School were “scared” of the Asian Invasion gang and would “put their heads down and rush past” to avoid confronting them.

Alistair Burnett, 18, said members of the Asian Invasion – also known as the “Broad Street Masses” – would intimidate other pupils at the Wroughton secondary school, deliberately barging and banging into other children and playing Asian music on their mobile phones at top volume.

“If other pupils did have to walk past the Asian Invasion gang when they were hanging round, frequently they would put their heads down and rush past the gang because they were scared of them”, he told London’s High Court.

Giving details of a series of incidents at the school, allegedly involving the Asian Invasion, the teenager said he was “unaware” of the school taking any steps to look into them or prevent them from happening again.

Mr Burnett was off sick from Ridgeway when Mr Webster was attacked, but told the court: “When I heard what had happened, I was not surprised because of what had happened to me previously and the fact that, on two occasions, the Asian men had come to the school for me.

Another witness, taxi driver Adrian Hill, 46, who has been driving Swindon’s streets for 14 years, also entered the witness box to support Mr Webster’s case. He told the judge that, despite passing the school frequently, he never saw a teacher on patrol at the tennis court gates, near where Henry was attacked and which, he said, was usually open.

Although there were teachers at the main gate and top gate, Mr Hill said he was “surprised” by the lack of security at the tennis court gates.

Mr Hill added three weeks before the attack on Mr Webster when he saw a group of “very suspicious” Asian men hanging around the tennis courts. He said they looked to be in their twenties. The taxi driver said he saw the same men loitering near the school on the day of the attack on Mr Webster. When he saw a crowd gather, he said he at first thought it was “just a normal fight in the playground”.

Although his view was obscured by the crowd, Mr Hill said he saw Mr Webster fall “and I immediately shouted ‘leave him alone’”. He added: “I then saw the Asian kids run out of the tennis courts through the gates and up Inverary Road”.

“At this time, there were no teachers anywhere near the tennis courts” said Mr Hill.

Also entering the witness box was pensioner, James Henderson, who said he witnessed a violent incident near the school in May 2006, which he described as “a pitched battle” between white and Asian youths.

Mr Henderson said he called out “pack it in” after seeing a large Asian man “repeatedly punching” a smaller white boy amidst a crowd of about 20 young people.

The pensioner described the scene as “just bedlam”. However, under cross-examination by the school’s barrister, Ronald Walker QC, Mr Henderson agreed it was an “isolated incident” as far as he was concerned.

Mr Webster is claiming massive damages from the school, but Ridgeway’s legal team points out that the attack took place after school hours and insists that, short of stopping and searching every visitor, nothing could have been done to prevent what happened. They also deny the attack was racially motivated.

The school’s duty was to discipline pupils, not outside adults, and arguments that laxity in enforcing school rules contributed to the attack on Henry have been described by Mr Walker as “fanciful” and “implausible”.

The High Court hearing continues.