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Belfast Live
Belfast Live
National
Shaun Keenan

Outrage as Lisburn school's sensory garden is ransacked by callous vandals

A Lisburn school has been left to pick up the pieces of a callous attack after being targeted by heartless vandals.

Unknown trespassers gained access to Pond Park Primary School's sensory garden and allegedly ransacked it.

It's unclear when the attack took place and the PSNI said they had no record of such an incident.

A spokesperson for Pond Park PS said they had identified who had carried out the damage and would prefer to deal with the incident "privately". They refused to give any further comment.

Alliance Alderman Amanda Grehan said: "This is a project that the children have worked on for a long time and anti-social behaviour in the area is getting worse.

"We need to find a way of connecting with the people who are doing this. I know the headmaster and he would have enough on his plate without something like this happening.

"This is an outdoor space for young people and we need that more than ever now. The response from the community has been amazing with people offering money to fix the garden.

"This will not deter the school and I am confident that they will rebuild it successfully again."

Meanwhile, Green Party councillor Simon Lee said it was difficult to comprehend the attack.

"I was sickened to hear about the damage to the wildlife and sensory garden at Pond Park Primary," Cllr Lee said.

"This is such an important resource for the children at the school, and I have been hearing a lot from residents who want to help.

"It’s heartening that when a few individuals engage in this appalling destructive behaviour, others step up and offer support."

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