THE priest in charge of a Chippenham church has been left annoyed that vital funds have had to be spent repairing damage to St Paul’s Church, after glass windows on the building were smashed.

The incident happened between 2pm on November 10 and 9am on November 11 at the church on Malmesbury Road, when ten panes of glass in the kitchen window were smashed.

A total of £370 has been spent repairing the damage, leaving Reverend Simon Dunn frustrated that the money had to be spent on repairs instead of activities or events in the community.

“We found out when someone came to unlock the church,” said the 48-year-old, who has been a member of the church since 2011. “It was the little panes of glass in the old kind of lead windows that are cross-shaped.

“The fact it has cost something is a sadness because it has taken the money away from other activities.

“You don’t know if it was caused by people mucking around, is it accidental or more deliberate?

“We had gaffer tape covering the holes which didn’t make the place look pretty, but more importantly it takes funds and time away from the work of the church.”

As well as damage to the glass windows, which was repaired last Thursday, a listed wall at the church was also damaged during the same period when it is believed a car collided with it.

“A car mounted the pavement and knocked over part of the wall, three large slabs were knocked down and a step was off its plinth,” added Rev Dunn.

“The wall was mended in-house, the base and step were not broken but the glass is something different.”

The smashed windows and damaged wall come just a month after graffiti was written on the side of St Andrew’s Church in Market place which cost £250 to remove.

Anyone with information should call police on 101.