Waikanae School caretaker, Peter Larkin, says that when he arrives at school each morning he will never know what he will find.
There have been on-going incidents of vandalism on a regular basis over the years. This has included graffiti, broken windows in the hall, break ins into the PE shed and caretakers shed, youths running on the building roofs, rubbish bins in the playground and attached to buildings set on fire, and in one instance, faeces smeared on the windows and door handles of the office block. Frequently, as with yesterday, there are smashed beer bottles, posing a danger to students when they arrive in the morning especially if they have been broken on grassed areas. Repair of damage is a cost to the school and means less money is available for resources for the children.
Yesterday’s vandalism included broken glass bottles, new scooter racks wrenched from the concrete destroying three of them, and a heavy concrete block from a construction area being used to try and break in to the Phys Ed shed.
“It is very disappointing to see a community place like our school being damaged. It is particularly upsetting for our children who cannot understand why people would do this and who would treat their school in this way,” observed Peter Corlett, a teacher at the school.
If anyone has any information they can contact the school on 902-6544, the local community police on 296 1950, or unanimously phone Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
