HEARTBROKEN pupils and staff at a Barrhead school are pleading for help after mindless vandals trashed their community garden.

An area at the back of St John’s Primary where children planned to grow their own fruit and vegetables was targeted sometime over the weekend.

Yobs tore through a polytunnel and trashed wooden benches, causing £1,000 worth of damage.

Now it is hoped members of the community will rally round by offering to help restore the garden.

A spokeswoman for the school told the Barrhead News: “The children are absolutely devastated because we were planning on planting different things but that now can’t be done.

“It’s a nightmare. The pupils want to make signs that can be put up to ask people not to ruin things for them.

“We’re all just fed up that we can’t use this space now.

“Any help we can get would be appreciated.”

A team of volunteers had helped to spruce up the school’s community garden last year, bringing a polytunnel back into use and building work benches for the children.

However, this is now the second time the area has been vandalised.

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The spokeswoman added: “It took them a good couple of weeks to complete the work and it was finished just before Christmas but, not long after that, the polytunnel was slashed and the door was damaged.

“We managed to get special tape to fix the damage, with the help of our primary two class and our janitor, but now it’s been destroyed again.

“It’s been ripped apart and the work benches that had been made for us have been broken.

“There is also broken glass and cans, so it’s obviously been used as a place for groups to sit and drink alcohol.”

A police spokesman confirmed they are investigating the vandalism at the school, in Commercial Road, which took place between 7pm on Friday and 6.30am on Monday.

He told the Barrhead News: “Police will continue to carry out investigations. We take all instances of vandalism very seriously.

“This is a valuable resource for the entire community within the school and we will carry out all available lines of enquiry to identify the person or persons responsible.”

Anyone with information about the vandalism is asked to call the police on 101.

If you can help to restore the community garden, call the school on 0141 570 7360.

Alternatively, contact the Barrhead News on 0141 435 8832 or send an email to editorial@barrheadnews.co.uk.