VILLAGERS in Minety, who have suffered a spate of vandalism including an attempt to set fire to the school, are hoping a new youth club will go some way to tackling the problem.

The club, which opened last night in the pavilion at the playing fields, will be run by parent volunteers.

It will cater for 12 to 18-year-olds and will offer music and entertainment.

Father-of-three Peter Ody who has led the development of the youth club said he had excellent support from parents and the parish council.

He said he was very pleased the club had been formed but warned it would not solve all Minety's problems.

He said: "I have had very strong backing from the parish council and parents; everybody seems to want something done.

"The youth club is only going to be on one night a week and it is not going to cure all the problems or stop the vandalism, but it will at least give the youth of the village something to do."

In the last three months the village has suffered incidents of serious vandalism.

In May, an attempt was made to set fire to part of the primary school.

In June, parish councillors were left to clear up smashed beer bottles littering the children's play area.

A sign put up to warn parents of the glass was torn down within a day.

The tennis club has also been targeted by vandals.

Several months ago the club was broken into. Tennis balls were stolen and £100 of damage was done to the clubhouse. The area around the building also had to undergo a cleanup after it was used as a toilet area.

Two weeks ago an 18-year-old Minety youth was arrested on a charge of intent to supply drugs after a stop and search by police.

Parish clerk Janet Lenton said: "It is very depressing. You try and do things to improve the village and all this vandalism costs a lot of money."

A survey of villagers revealed growing concern about the lack of youth activities.

An initial meeting attended by 50 parents overwhelmingly supported the idea of setting up a youth club.

A committee of a dozen parents was formed to oversee the running of a youth club.

They are now hoping the activities will act as a focus for teenagers.

Parish council chairman David Brown said he was very happy the plans were going ahead.

He said: "I am delighted the youth club has got off the ground.

"There was an attempt by another villager a while back to start a club but that failed because there was not enough support for parents.

"I really hope this club will be successful."

Mr Ody said he was pleased there were enough volunteers to get the club up and running.

He said he would be now be listening to the views of the teenagers to see what they want from the club.

The police have also welcomed the youth club.

PC Martin Alvis of Malmesbury Police, who warned youths in an article in the parish magazine to keep away from the school after the arson attack, thought the setting up of the youth club was a positive idea.

He said: "I think it is brilliant and the right way forward.

"It is nice to see something positive coming out of a negative. I hope it gets the backing of the community."

Secretary of the tennis club Judith Jackson said: "I would prefer that the vandals were playing tennis rather than causing problems.

"I think the youth club is a great idea, I just hope it works.

"The problem is that the kids who cause the problems with vandalism are not the ones that will go to youth clubs."