School forced to spend vital funds on deterring vandals

throwing outside play equipment over the school grounds.”

Ms Mason added: “We think it’s past pupils, which is really upsetting.

“They even broke our only disabled toilet.

“For our pupils it’s upsetting to find their stuff has been kicked around the playground.”

Despite the efforts of school staff nobody has been caught.

Unable to afford genuine CCTV, the school installed dummy cameras – but these were also trashed.

Ms Mason said: “Our caretaker, Sue Heywood, had put up dummy CCTV cameras in the hope that it would deter them, but it hasn’t; they are wise to the fact that they are only dummies.

“The vandalism has cost the school in replacing resources, repair work to the building and fixtures and fittings, and additional time for the caretaker to put things right.”

Thankfully, the school has been given £1,400 from The Crossroads Project after Ms Heywood appealed to the Meltham charity.

The generous donation is not quite enough to buy and install the CCTV.

But Elliott Crowe, a parent of former pupils of the school, who runs security company Abacus Systems, has offered to install the CCTV.

Ms Mason said: “He’s basically doing it at cost price.

“It’s absolutely amazing. We wouldn’t have been able to do it otherwise.

“There’s a feel good factor about someone in the community coming forward to do this.

“We know the local authority hasn’t got the money so it’s nice when someone makes the difference.” Business manager of Meltham Moor Primary School, Nicola Mason, with some of the year four youngsters from the school which has had cctv installed by a local company after recent vandalism