A heartless act of vandalism

Profanities painted on walls is something no child should have to see, but this is what the children of Welcome Bay Playcentre have been greeted with in recent weeks.

Vandals have used the centre's own paint supplies, which they got from a smashed resource cupboard, to smear obscenities on the walls.


Vandalism at Welcome Bay Playcentre. Supplied photos.

Broken glass has also been littered through the centre's grass.

'We literally had to vacuum the grass,” says a playcentre spokesperson.

'New Zealand is one of the only countries in this world where you can run on the grass in bare feet without fear of nasty insects, snakes, and other nasties.

"Well not so at Welcome Bay Playcentre, thanks to the vandals who are getting into the playground, this could not be done here last month.”

This and other despicable behaviour in a place of security and fun for under 5's, has infuriated the families who attend the playcentre.

'Parents and supervisors work very hard to provide for the families who attend, and most of the resources come from hours of fundraising.

'Playcentres are parent-led early childhood education centres where groups of parents provide high quality learning, and parent support for each other.”

Welcome Bay Playcentre operates Monday, Wednesday and Friday mornings from 9am - midday during the school term and is located beside Welcome Bay School.

The centre is appealing for people to report any suspicious activity they see to police, no matter how old the person may be.

'We are sick of the constant clean-up, the cost of replacement of resources and the downright meanness of the vandals who do this to our treasured place.

'Young children and their parents are at the very heart of the community. They don't deserve to be treated like this.”

Suspicious activity can be reported to Tauranga Police on 07 577 4300.

Alternatively, information can be left anonymously via the Crimestoppers 0800 555 111 line.

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11 comments

Very sad

Posted on 01-09-2016 11:00 | By Belinda Urquhart

This is absolutely disgusting the people responsible for this have no respect for other people's property nor themselves, hope the are caught and have to clean up this disgusting mess


Welcome Bay Pre-School

Posted on 01-09-2016 11:43 | By Denny G

Most probably the perpetrators are off spring of some of those who have children attending at present. Report the culprits, punish them in a meaningful way and then make them do duty for a couple of hundred hours.


Maggots

Posted on 01-09-2016 11:55 | By Tgaboy

There are some really sad and despicable people around. Looks like kids or even more tragic, uneducated youths. Probably have rotten parents who have produced rotten kids. Either way, it's so sad we can't enforce sterilisation. Society could be so much sweeter if some people weren't able to reproduce.


Get a guard dog

Posted on 01-09-2016 12:24 | By Jane Harmer

This is one occasion when a couple of well-trained guard dogs on the premises would work a treat. Surely there is someone amongst the community who could organise this, or maybe the Playcentre should adopt a pound dog and put it on night duty. Or perhaps you can install an alarm system that wakes the neighbourhood and cameras at strategic points. This is sniggering kids who think it's clever to outwit 'grown-ups' - perhpas even envious that they had parents who obviously don't give a fig what they get up to, so they probably never experienced the joys of Playcentre at all. So easy for kids who feel disregarded to react negatively like this. And that's no excuse!


Overit

Posted on 01-09-2016 12:41 | By overit

It looks like kids writing.


pathetic

Posted on 01-09-2016 13:04 | By Blogger

Looks like same stuff happening since I went there 9 years ago, time to invest in cameras so you can catch them and report to police!!


Guard Dog

Posted on 01-09-2016 14:01 | By Taurangaboy

Yes a guard dog would be a great idea, it can catch its own food!! Seriously though, if someone who shouldn't be there gets bitten, buy the dog some fillet steak......


Cameras...

Posted on 01-09-2016 14:54 | By GreertonBoy

Or parents or those running it taking turns sleeping over (with no car parked outside) and try to catch them red handed. On kids not seeing it... should hear the vocabulary of the average 9 year old (when their parents aren't around) ... not much kids haven't read, heard, seen or said. A low act tho, I do agree


punishment ......

Posted on 01-09-2016 16:36 | By begesch

.... for whoever does that kind of stuff should be cleaning these walls and others, in a high vis vest. Those vests should be marked as "culprit" so they get shamed and blamed. They'd stop as people would laugh at them. It worked in Singapore.


.

Posted on 01-09-2016 16:47 | By P0INT BLANK

Pay me and I'll be quite happy to sit down there all night with my Rottweiler & wait for this scum to turn up.


Hmmmm

Posted on 01-09-2016 17:03 | By How about this view!

Judging from the quality of the penmanship, these oxygen thieves from Welcome Bay are well into their late teens. They must make their mothers really proud!


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