AN investigation has been launched into police tactics at the last student demonstrations in London after a Middlesex University student needed emergency brain surgery after being hit on the head.

Alfie Meadows, 20, who took part in demonstrations to save the Philosophy department at the university in May, underwent an operation to relieve swelling on his brain.

His friends claim he was hit on the head by a policeman as he tried to leave an area where protesters were being “kettled” in Parliament Square on December 9.

He is said to be recovering well at home following the emergency procedure.

The Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) has now picked up the investigation alongside several other complaints over police tactics at the event.

They are investigating CCTV and looking to identify witnesses who can clarify what happened to Mr Meadows.

Staff and students at the university have signed an open letter to voice their “disgust” at the police's behaviour.

It reads: “Protesters wishing to leave the demonstration had been told by police to exit via Whitehall, where many were then kettled and attacked.

“At around 6pm, the police launched a series of unprovoked charges, using horses, truncheons and shields on protesters trapped in Whitehall.

“Hundreds of peaceful protesters were lined up on the south side of Whitehall and witnessed these attacks.

“Over the last month, we have been witness numerous times to police attacks on young protesters, many of school age, with nothing to defend themselves but their passion, anger and sense of injustice.

“The spectacle of brute, armed force marshalled against the young holds up an unflattering mirror to the society that condones it.”