Two Basildon schools were counting the cost of vandal attacks which left more than a dozen windows smashed and a special playground wrecked.

Heartbroken deaf and blind children arrived for lessons at a special school in Basildon to find their unique sensory garden smashed up.

Years of hard work were destroyed in a few minutes after plants grown by students at Elmbrook special school in Church Road were uprooted and tossed aside. A fence was also ripped down, windows smashed and terracotta plant pots kicked around like footballs and thrown into a fish pond killing frogs' spawn.

The sensory garden had been specially built to bring an extra dimension to the lives of deaf and blind children.

In a separate incident, vandals also ran amok at James Hornsby High in Laindon. Fourteen windows were smashed during a £2,000 wrecking spree.

Elmbrook headteacher Dorothy Ainsley said students were devastated by the attack on the garden.

She said: "They've come in and broken pots and flowers that were ready to come out and thrown them into the fish pond.

"It's the older children aged 16 to 19 who keep the garden lovely for the other children.

"We are absolutely sick. The children need it for their curriculum."

It is thought the vandals, who could be as young as ten, came over the school roof or climbed over the playground fence.

She said: "We have children who have profound learning difficulties and who are deaf or blind.

"The idea is that they can come into the garden and have different experiences.

"Everything planted there had meaning. The herbs and wind chimes are a lovely experience for the children who cannot see. And we have many different surfaces for children with wheelchairs.

PC Dave Smith of Basildon police said: "This was a mindless attack that has caused a lot of hurt and upset. We would urged anyone who saw what happened to contact us."

Anyone with information should contact Basildon police on 01268 532212.

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