Thieves steal nursery toys

The theft took place on Monday evening, just minutes after staff locked up.

When staff arrived on Tuesday morning, they realised that swings and pushbikes worth £400-£500 were missing from the nursery’s garden.

CCTV cameras covering Child’s Play nursery in Thornhill Road, Dewsbury, filmed two men in the grounds at 6.26pm on Monday.

Deputy manager Amy Jasiewicz said: “The parents we have told had a few choice words for the thieves. I just think it’s sad, taking toys from children.”

Nursery manager Sam Crossland arrived first on Tuesday to find that the gate into the nursery was open and the padlock securing it had been removed.

Miss Jasiewicz said: “She told me that the gate had been left open, but even if I had not shut the gate, I would not have taken the padlock off.”

It was not until later that staff realised the nursery had been robbed.

Miss Jasiewicz said: “It was all a bit of a shock, because we’d had breakfast with the children and it was not until around 10am that we realised the toys were gone.”

She was surprised that the nursery had been targeted.

“The toys have all been used by lots of kids,” she said. “They are well-used toys. It’s not like they were robbing someone’s house at Christmas and they were all brand new.”

When staff looked at CCTV footage, the last member of staff can be seen leaving at 6.18pm, just six minutes before the break in.

Miss Jasiewicz said: “A guy clearly walks along the path and looks through the gates into the nursery.

“It looks as though he is talking to someone nearby, and then a second person appears.

“Especially the first guy on the footage, you can see him really clearly, and the second guy raises his head up.”

Now staff at the nursery will have to meet the cost of replacing the toys or risk pushing up their insurance premiums.

The nursery looks after 64 children aged up to eight, and Miss Jasiewicz said many were sure to be upset by the loss of their favourite toys.

Miss Jasiewicz said: “We have a little boy in the toddler group and it’s taken him a long time to settle in.

“But there was a little red toy bike and he has really taken to it, but that has been stolen.”

Contact police on 08456060606.