Heartless vandals target charity’s vans

Sep 29 2011 by Alistair Watson, West Lothian Courier

HEARTLESS vandals have caused substantial damage to a charity’s delivery vans which transport food to the elderly.

Around £1000 worth of damage has been reported to two of Food Train’s Peugeot Expert vans after their tyres were slashed, windows smashed and substantial damage to their interiors.

Both vans were parked at the Waverley Industrial Estate in Bathgate and were targeted some time between 5pm on Monday and 7.15am on Tuesday.

The Food Train, which provides a personal shopping service and other services for the county, is made available to older people who, for whatever reason, are unable to shop for themselves.

The service was launched in West Lothian 2010.

In West Lothian the service has been set up with funding from West Lothian Council’s new Challenge Fund.

The development also has the support of West Lothian Community Health and Care Partnership.

Food Train staff were left devastated when they turned up for work on Tuesday morning to discover the damage.

The charity was forced to shell out for the hire of a replacement van on Tuesday to make vital deliveries to the people who use the service.

Alison Wright, regional manager of The Food Train, said the charity had been touched by the public’s response to their plight and were encouraged by the support of the local people.

She added: “We were very disappointed on Tuesday but we have managed to get one of the vans back on the road.

“One thing we would like to make clear is this kind of mindless vandalism will not stop us from doing our job.

“We deliver a service to vulnerable and elderly people in West Lothian and they need their food so that is what we will continue to do no matter what the circumstances.

“We have a very dedicated bunch of volunteers who will chip in and get the job done no matter what and we are extremely grateful for their committment.

“The service have had a lot of support from everyone and there is a lot of public interest in what we are doing in the area.

“I don’t know why these people have targeted us as they didn’t steal anything. It seems to have been just mindless vandalism.

“We are taking measures to find more secure parking.”

The incident has been condemned by West Lothian Council leader Peter Johnston.

He said: “This act of vandalism is disgraceful and cruel and I’d urge anyone with information to contact the police.

“The Food Train is such an important service to so many elderly residents who rely on the charity for affordable, healthy food.

“Volunteers dedicate their time to helping the charity’s customers and this is a real blow to everyone involved.

“The culprits should be ashamed of themselves.”

Lothian and Borders Police are appealing for witnesses to the vandalism.

A police spokesman added: “This has been a mindless destruction of two vans, which are essential in delivering food to elderly and vulnerable members of the West Lothian community.

“Staff have been left sickened by this incident and officers are keen to speak with anyone who saw any suspicious activity in or around the Waverly Industrial Estate.

“Similarly, anyone with information that can assist officers with their investigation is also asked to contact police immediately.”

Anyone with any information can contact Lothian and Borders Police on 0131 311 3131, or the charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.