VANDALS who left a trail of damage at a Felixstowe school have today had a £1,000 bounty placed on their heads.The reward has been put up jointly by the Evening Star and a retired local businessman – to try to persuade someone who knows who caused the mayhem to come forward and help put away those who did it.

VANDALS who left a trail of damage at a Felixstowe school have today had a £1,000 bounty placed on their heads.

The reward has been put up jointly by the Evening Star and a retired local businessman – to try to persuade someone who knows who caused the mayhem to come forward and help put away those who did it.

Deben High School was left with a bill for around £14,000 after a hosepipe was left running through a window for more than 12 hours, and 23 windows were smashed, during half-term.

The repair bill could yet go higher as staff are waiting for a wood block floor to dry out before they know if it will need replacing.

The businessman, who has put up half the reward, said he had been disgusted by the vandalism at the school in Garrison Lane.

"These actions were calculated destruction – what did they think would happen if they left a hosepipe through a window?" he said.

"It was dreadful, an almost unbelievable thing to do. What kind of people – well, people is not the right word to describe them – do this? It's not just the damage but that it is harming someone else's education.

"I despair at what you see in Felixstowe. There is no consideration for others, damage, foul and abusive language – and these are older yobbos who should be past that and know better."

The man, who has asked not to be named, was also upset at vandalism which recently closed the Girl Guide HQ based at the school and used by various organisations.

"I just hope the reward helps the police and brings someone forward with useful information to catch these people so they can be punished," he added.

The reward would be paid to a person supplying information which leads to an arrest and conviction.

The vandals climbed over a flat roof to reach a quad where the hosepipe was stored and then climb back again with it and feed it through a high-level window in the sixth form common room.

Had the premises manager not come in on Sunday morning to do work and checked round the rear of the school, the pipe would have been undiscovered for another 36 hours.

The damage has caused disruption throughout the school because the sixth form common room is out of action. It is used for some examinations and by the sixth formers, and both will need to be found other accommodation.

Police are also investigating the vandalism and appealing for witnesses who may have seen suspicious activity in and around the school grounds on June 4-6 to contact Pc Steven Lee on 01473 613500.

What do you think of the vandals? Write to Your Letters, Evening Star, 30 Lower Brook Street, Ipswich, IP4 1AN, or e-mail eveningstarletters@eveningstar.co.uk