Wiltshire nursery fundraising after minibus stolen and burned

A nursery has started fundraising for better security after one of their minibuses was stolen, had its engine stripped out and then set on fire.

Sunflowers nursery, in the village of East Grafton, near Marlborough, is now trying to raise £7,500.

The minibus was taken on the evening of 5 September.

A new one has been leased temporarily - if the nursery had been left without this, it would have affected breakfast and after school clubs.

Sunflowers is non-profit and charity-registered, working with more than 150 families.

Sue England is the business manager at the nursery and said they have since found out that ford transit engines are sought after.

"It's shocking. That's the word I would use to describe it," she said.

"It felt uncomfortable that somebody had clocked it. Somebody had seen it and somebody had than watched for an opportunity to take it."

St Johns School in Marlborough has lent them a minibus, so there has been no disruption to service.

"We consider ourselves to be an extension of home and stability for children is really important. Any disruptions to routine are difficult," she said.

"Our plans are that we will be opening up the front of the building, reducing height to the hedges, replacing the gates which are quite old and rickety with something more substantial, looking at our vehicle security and at our CCTV.

"All of that isn't something that's in the budget for us. We work on relatively small margins.

"When we do fundraising, it's usually something fabulous for the children, so it's really sad to be doing it for security."

Follow BBC West on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to: [email protected]