Appeal issued over community allotment theft and vandalism

Published Wednesday, 30th May 2018

RESIDENTS of Hartlepool are being asked to help protect a community allotment after the site was targeted by thieves and vandals.

A quantity of timber worth around £200 was recently stolen from the Hartlepool Borough Council-led Waverley Terrace Allotment project and then staff arrived at work last Friday to discover that raised planter beds had been damaged in an apparent attempt to steal more wood.

The allotment project uses gardening and other outdoor activities to bring about positive changes in the lives of people with disabilities or those who are in ill health, vulnerable or disadvantaged. It also enables unemployed people to get involved in voluntary work to improve their chances of finding a job.

Jon Wright, the Council’s Promoting Change Transforming Lives Project Co-ordinator, said: “We were shocked by the first theft but it was an even bigger blow to find that we had been targeted again.

“It is soul destroying for the volunteers to come and find that their good work is being undone by the mindless actions of a few people.”

Councillor Kevin Cranney, Chair of Hartlepool Council’s Regeneration Services Committee, added: “The Waverley Terrace Allotment is a tremendous project and I would urge residents living in the vicinity to help us protect it by acting as our eyes and ears and reporting any suspicious activity to the police on 101.”