£100,000 Keynsham bandstand vandalised days after being finished

A new £100,000 bandstand in Keynsham's Memorial Park was been targeted by vandals within days of it being completed.

Families walking through the park at the weekend found the walls daubed with paint and a hole burned in the tarpaulin sail-style roof.

The grass around the bandstand was littered with smashed glass.

The bandstand was designed by local architect Paul Campbell. It was used for the first time at the Keynsham Music Festival in July but was not fully completed at that stage.

In August the Household Troops Band of the Salvation Army gave an hour-long concert in the bandstand to hundreds of local people.

A bandstand for the park was first suggested at a meeting of Keynsham Town Council four years ago.

Money was put aside and planning consent sought and it was finally completed in August.

But almost before the paint was dry the vandals set their sights on the structure. The back wall was covered with graffiti and now a hole has been burned in the sail roof.

There has been a meeting with police who are investigating and have a number of suspects.

Town council clerk Elaine Giles said: "It has been happening ever since the bandstand was completed.

"They think 'there's a nice big wall, we'll daub all over it'.

"But solutions are in hand. The police are on the case and a mobile CCTV camera will be used.

"The bandstand will be repainted in its original colour and then anti-graffiti paint will be used on top so that any graffiti can be washed off."

She said that the council hoped not to have to replace the whole roof and had contacted the manufacturers about the best way of repairing the damaged part.

The vandalism will not affect plans by the town council for a series of summer concerts next year.

Ms Giles said: "The first concert by the Salvation Army was extremely successful and very well attended.

"People who were in the park heard the music and came to listen.

"Next year there will be a whole series of concerts to cater for all musical tastes."

Police have stepped up patrols in the park and are asking people who go there regularly to contact officers if they see anything suspicious.

Inspector Tim Stuckes said: "The problem is that plans for the bandstand were drawn up years ago and if it was being done today we could have given advice to design out crime.

"We have stepped up patrols in the area but I would ask that local people pay attention to the bandstand.

"It is surprising the number of people who walk through the park in the evening. If they see people hanging about we would like to know.

"We don't want to stop people using it but it is an expensive community facility and we are looking to protect it as best we can."