The Chapmanslade Parish Council along with the community have expressed their disappointment and anger after an incident of vandalism at the village playground on the Memorial Field.

A picnic table and eight, ten foot long fence panels were stolen overnight between December 8 and 9, leaving the playground in a sorry and unsafe state which was unfit for children play in.

Members of the community believe the fencing was cut down with a hand saw and reported the incident to Wiltshire Police who are carrying enquiries.

Chapmanslade Parish Council chairman, Keith Muston said: “I just cant believe someone would do this, especially to a children’s playground.

“We are so angry about this. The fencing is worth very little, so we find it very hard to understand why someone has done this.

“It has been reported to the police and we hope they will be able to find who did this. There are houses around the playground so we hope someone saw something.”

Former parish council chairman and active member of the community Phil Jefferson said: “We are so upset about this, I don’t know what sort of person would do this.

“Children’s playgrounds must be secure in order to be safe, and by leaving the park in this state it is very unsafe, it’s appalling.”

Since the theft, members of the community have been keen to secure the play ground to make it a safe area.

Adam Oakley, owner of Oakley Garden Machinery in Frome has been working to make the playground safe by removing sharp nails, taping up posts and removing scraps of wood.

He said: "I don know who would stoop down to that level, its unbelievable.

"I have just been doing a bit of work to make the play area safe again, which is not something that these people thought about when they took the fencing.

"However, it's not all bad news as we have had a few offers from companies who are willing to repair the area, so although this should have never happened in the first place, we are making progress.

A spokesman from Wiltshire Police said: “The incident took place at some point between 6pm on 8 December and 7.30am on 9 December 2017.

“Anyone with information is asked to contact Wiltshire Police on 101.”