CCTV footage shows group of children running rampant at Jubilee Gardens

It comes after five youngsters were caught after the last reported incident, when hundreds of pounds of plants were wrecked. CCTV footage showed a group of children pulling up plants and hurling them into the pond.

Warbreck councillor Michele Scott said: “We have been involved in trying to get something done to deter these kids from repeatedly targeting and vandalising the gardens.

“The volunteers took over a few years ago and started to carry out a lot of work to maintain it and further develop it. They have also raised charity funds, so it has been really demoralising as all their hard work just repeatedly gets destroyed. Earlier in the year, because of all the planting taking place, we paid money to increase the height of some of the walls to give some extra protection to some of the beds. It got kicked down within two days.

“There’s more and more money having to be spent on the damage that these kids are causing that isn’t going into the garden, and it’s hugely frustrating.

“They are ripping up shrubs and plants, throwing them in the pond and paying no regard to anybody who tells them to stop.”

She said volunteers attempted to log all incidents of vandalism with police, but could not always successfully reach them on the 101 non-emergency number.

Insp David Wilson said patrols had been stepped up, with a drone sent up to help catch the culprits in the act.

The five youths were “spoken to” in front of their parents – with no incidents report since last Saturday.

Police patrols will continue to be increased, however.

Insp Wilson thanked the council for putting up CCTV cameras, and said: “You want kids in the park but they have completely overstepped the mark. The friends group has put a lot of time, effort and money into the park so to see people coming and trashing it, it’s not acceptable.”

In response to people calling for tougher punishments for the youths responsible, he said the way officers dealt with the problems was appropriate given the children’s age – and the fact they had not been in trouble before.

He said: “We’re not into criminalising people if we can avoid it.”

Coun Danny Scott said the parents of the young vandals should pay the cost of the damage caused.

He said: “These parents do not seem to know what their young children are doing at night. I think they have to take more responsibility. Some parental reimbursement for the plants destroyed.

“This vandalism has been going on all year. They seem to take pleasure in pulling up plants and kicking them all over the place.

“It’s become epidemic in the last few months. We have had 50 to 60 plants pulled out in one night. We had a light installed at the waterfall that changed colour.

“They ripped the cage off it. The tool shed was broken into a couple of times.

“There needs to be some sort of payback for what has been done. These parents haven’t got a clue what their children are doing and they don’t seem to care.”

Recorded vandalism: ++ April 13: Pump door kicked in;++ April 20: New wall, built on April 18, kicked down;++ July 1: Second new wall kicked down;++ July 23: Damaged walls rebuilt at a cost of £786;++ July 28: Another section of wall damaged;++ September: Newly installed waterfall light feature damaged;++ November 17 and 18: Plants ripped out and destroyed; and++ November 30: Two separate incidents of plants being ripped out of flowerbeds.