A POPULAR village play park given a major upgrade and renovation by the community has been abused for the third time when vandals ripped two basketball boards from their mountings.

Previously in February the park was attacked. First, glass bottles were smashed and the debris left on the ground as a danger to children. This happened just three weeks after a sign was toppled amid warnings that continued attacks could lead to its closure due to costs of mending damage.

The park is run by volunteers and in September was reopened with a new toddler’s area provided after an appeal to the community who helped pay towards the £70,000 costs. Funds were raised by Yelverton Community Projects (YCP — run by residents) to modernise and make more accessible to families with children with extra needs and people from care homes in an area from as far as Plymouth.

Ric Cheadle, chairman of YCP, said of the latest damage (last Sunday (April 13): “This is another round of mindless, pointless vandalism to hit the play park.  Once again, if we can raise the money, we'll repair the damage. It beggars belief why someone feels this is a good thing to do.

“When we replace them, we’ll have to beef up the way they are fixed to attempt to make them ‘idiot proof’. It’ll cost up to £1,500. Whoever did it, ripped them off and just left them where they fell. indless, pointless vandalism. To support the park go to www.yelvertoncommunityprojects.org