16076/3Vandals have left a village hall committee with no choice but to install security cameras.

Three cameras were put up at Bratton's Jubilee Hall this week to prevent another attack on the recently refurbished building.

The £1,500 cameras mean the committee will not be able buy other equipment, but members hope the added security will cut insurance costs.

Vandals caused thousands of pounds of damage when they broke into the hall in Westbury Road on September 13.

Gill Hurn, vice chairman of The Jubilee Hall's management committee, said members knew the hall's insurance premium would rise after the vandalism and decided to take action sooner rather than later.

She said: "We were so dismayed at the terrible things they did as we've only had it up and running for two years. It was heartbreaking.

"They got into the hall somehow and crow-barred all the locked doors. They broke into the electrical cupboard where all the microphones are stored, but all they took was a laptop.

"It's not a decision we took lightly. It's a deterrent. If they try to get in again with a bit of luck we'll catch them on camera.

"This was £1,500 we could have spent on things we needed like more tables and chairs. We felt it had to be done."

The Jubilee Hall was reopened on June 1 2002 after a £340,000 refit and extension to coincide with the Queen's Golden Jubilee £90,000 of it raised by villagers.

Mrs Hurn said: "It was a lot of hard work raising that money. We got £250,000 from the National Lottery and raised the rest ourselves by getting every grant we could."

The original hall dates back to Queen Victoria's Golden Jubilee in 1897.