PENSIONERS in Trowbridge are too scared to go back to a town club after vandals struck twice in four days.

Thousands of pounds of damage was caused at the Park Club in Trowbridge when young vandals used stones, bricks and an air rifle to trash the 40-year-old club.

Scores of pensioners regularly meet at the venue to socialise but now fear returning to their favourite haunt.

The board of trustees responsible for the club are already looking to raise more than £15,000 to make the building vandal-proof.

They have been awarded £1,000 by Trowbridge town council and last month secured a £5,000 lottery grant.

Grills on the windows and the removal of a porch area are among the options being looked at, but Semington-based builder Terry Kemp, who has been repairing damage caused at the club for 10 years, believes the situation is a disgrace.

He said: "It is almost like locking the elderly people up. I hope these kids have a conscience."

Police have increased their patrols of the park after the latest attack on Saturday night.

Shocked club members said they were distressed at the extent of damage.

Walter Conway, 76, of Boundary Walk said: "This is the second time in just four days and it is only a matter of weeks since it last happened.

"I can't put into words what I think of the people who did this."

His wife Gwen, 71, said: "It is as though they are trying to get rid of the older people."

Insp Jon Tapper said people needed to report incidents as soon as they could to help police catch the culprits.

He said: "These young people are not targeting the elderly, they are just targeting the club because it is vulnerable."

Trowbridge mayor Jeff Osborn said the town's youth needed to respect the elderly and that even he felt intimidated to go in to the park.