Villagers raise funding for CCTV to combat church vandalism in Theale

THEALE villagers have raised almost £1,500 in a bid to combat antisocial behaviour at their historic church.

Over the last few months, Holy Trinity Church has been repeatedly targeted by a gang of youths.

Recent incidents include damage to the church windows, to the tower door, which the vandals kicked in, and a toilet shed.

A GoFundMe page was created in response. Organisers had originally hoped to raise funds for additional CCTV facilities, however, local people and friends of the village have pushed the initiative well beyond its initial target of £200.

It is hoped that extensive repairs can now be carried out.

On the funding page they say: “Theale in the main is a very peaceful and respectable place to live, where every resident should be able to feel safe and not intimidated.

“It’s upsetting that this vandalism is happening and this type of behaviour cannot continue.

“Something needs to be done about the antisocial behaviour and criminal involve converting an adjacent field into a larger car park. damage and one way to nip this in the bud would be to install security cameras so that we can catch the culprits in the act.

“It will hopefully also deter further vandalism to the church and grounds.

“Anything that you can donate to the cause will be truly appreciated.

“If we are lucky enough to hit the target and have money left over, the excess funds will go on repairs the damage caused to the bell tower door, the outside tap in the graveyard and any other work required to the church and grounds.”

To donate, https://bit.ly/31hTev9

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The station footbridge – which permits access to either side of the