30890-88VANDALS have forced the Thames-down Hydrotherapy Pool to close after attacking the premises and leaving £10,000 damage in their wake.

Youths ripped off CCTV cameras and trampled on them then smashed windows with stones, before fleeing when the alarms were set off.

The pool will remain shut for the rest of the week, depriving hundreds of people, including children and the disabled, of the chance to swim.

Pool manager Paul Charlwood, 53, said: "The culprits are so low, they are beneath contempt. It makes me so angry that a few minutes of senselessness has denied so many people of our facilities."

The youths struck on Friday at around 9pm when they climbed an 8ft fence to enter the pool site in Jefferies Avenue.

They disconnected four CCTV cameras and smashed them before clambering onto the pool area roof and shattering four windows.

The glass fell into the pool and activated the alarms, causing the vandals to run away.

Voluntary staff who run the pool worked through the night clearing the debris.

Mr Charlwood said: "We were here until 1.30am. These actions are so despicable. It's not just the financial damage. Countless individuals have been robbed of the simple pleasure our pool provides."

The pool was emptied of 21,000 gallons of water over the weekend, so it can be thoroughly cleaned.

Swindon police have collected forensic evidence from the premises and are examining CCTV footage taken before the cameras were disconnected,

Jean Clifford, 62, runs The Otters voluntary group, which takes disabled children to the pool.

She said: "The children will be heartbroken that they can't come swimming this week.

"Words can't describe the people who did this. It's so upsetting."

The pool, which includes a hot spa, is used by 30 disabled adult groups, 15 schools for children with special needs and thousands of individuals who are referred by doctors.

Sally Catton, 69, from Old Town, suffers from osteoarthritis and has been going to the pool for 10 years.

She said: "I'm so cross, I could cry with temper. Thousands are missing out because of this mindless act. The pool is the only form of exercise I get. It's a lifeline."

Alan Crook, 54, started using the pool after he had a stroke two years ago. He said: "It is a unique and wonderful service. After my stroke doctors said I would never walk outside again. I can walk three miles, thanks to the pool.

"I can't understand how anyone could damage the place. All that energy could have done something positive. It's all so pointless."

This year the pool, which includes a hot spa, is celebrating its 25th anniversary and hopes to launch a £250,000 fundraising campaign to maintain and improve its facilities.

Insp David McMullin, of Swindon police, said: "This is a specialist venue that greatly benefits people who are less fortunate than many.

"It is abhorrent to think that a small minority of youths has robbed them of this facility.

"Their actions are reprehensible and utterly senseless. We are determined to catch the offenders responsible and urge anyone with information to get in touch."

Anyone with information is urged to call Swindon police on 01793 528111.

Victoria Tagg