Appeal after attack on school

Detectives are appealing for information following a burglary at a school in the Trench Road area.

It occurred some time between 6pm on Thursday, May 3 and 1am, this morning, Friday, May 4.

An office was entered by forcing a grill from a window and breaking the window. It is not clear at this stage if anything has been stolen.

Police are appealing for information and are asking anyone who noticed any suspicious activity around the school to contact them. Police are also appealing to everyone to report suspicious activity to police immediately.

Anyone who witnessed the incident or who has any information is asked to contact Police in Strand Road.

“The impact of criminal damage such as graffiti and broken windows can have a detrimental effect on our local schools causing funding to be spent on repairing the damage instead of being used for extra staff to help the children learn and on much needed school resources, like books and computer equipment. Money is also being constantly diverted from school projects to meet the expense of securing premises with crime prevention measures such as window grills, alarm systems, security cameras and fences.

“It is disheartening and frustrating to see how mindless acts of vandalism affect a school and, in turn, how this affects the whole community. Neither the schools nor the pupils deserve this treatment and I would urge members of the public to assist police in reducing this type of crime. No one wants to see teachers and pupils return to a school which has been vandalised.

“We would ask anyone who lives near a school to support the Police by keeping an eye out for anything unusual or suspicious. We would also urge parents to be aware of what their children are up to and where they are when they are not at home.

“People should not confront possible criminals - that responsibility lies with us - but public information is vital to helping us respond effectively.”