Break-in at community centre

VOLUNTEERS are up in arms after vandals smashed up their community centre, causing thousands of pounds' worth of damage.

The wreckers broke into Treeton Community Centre overnight last Wednesday, before dousing the centre’s electrics with petrol, smashing through doors and vandalising shutters.

They also cut through the CCTV cables and trashed electrical equipment, leaving the charity which runs the centre with hefty clean-up and repair bill.

Nothing was stolen from the Pit Lane building, apart from a bucket of coppers, containing around £25, which was being collected for charity.

Police investigating the break-in found a pair of red gloves and a bag smelling of petrol close to the scene.

Kevin Whitworth, secretary of the Treeton Village Association, which manages the centre, said that volunteers were shocked and upset.

He added: “The people who did this are the lowest of the low. All they have done is affect the people who care about their community.

“One of our volunteers went there to open up and had they tried to switch on the power, who knows what would have happened.”

The building was closed immediately after the incident and a damage assessment was set to be carried out this week.

The village association has been forced to cancel children's birthday parties and other functions until the centre can reopen.

Mr Whitworth continued: “I can’t say at this stage exactly what the cost of the damage will be but it will be a considerable amount, possibly between £3,000 and £4,000.

“It’s hard enough raising money under normal circumstances, as we are a charity and we have to make the centre sustainable.

“People have been really helpful and willing to muck in to clean it up ready for when we can reopen.”

Volunteers celebrated the centre’s fifth birthday last December and apart from one previous break-in, the building has remained free from crime.

Mr Whitworth added: “We were broken into once right at the start before we had an alarm but we’ve never had anything like this before.

“It seems that someone wants us to be out of business for a while but we’ve no idea who. This is totally out of the blue.”

Anyone with information about the break-in should contact Pc Louise Neal on 01709 832280.