A Moray secondary school has been trashed in a “mindless” vandalism spree.
Science lab equipment, computers and windows were all targeted in the break-in at Forres Academy.
Several fire extinguishers were also set off during the raid which left glass shattered and debris strewn across classroom floors.
Moray Council revealed the cost of damage is likely to stretch to more than £10,000 – but stressed they were “confident” the school would be ready to welcome back pupils after the summer break in two weeks.
Yesterday, head teacher Carol Stuart was at the school to begin coordinating the clear up in her final two weeks before retirement.
Forres councillor George Alexander, who taught maths at the school, was saddened to learn of the damage.
He said: “It’s a great shame when things like this happen. These are facilities provided at the tax-payer’s expense to help the young people in our community.
“I don’t know what you do with people with the mentality of causing mindless vandalism such as this.”
It is understood police were alerted to the incident after an alarm was triggered in the school.
Trays were pulled from cupboards in classrooms and left on the ground while high-tech whiteboards were left unusable.
A spokesman for Moray Council said the damage was caused following a break-in on Friday night.
He said: “This is a significant amount of damage – easily into a five-figure sum.
“Why someone felt compelled to carry out such destruction is beyond our comprehension, but our main task now is to get the school operational in time for the start of the new term on August 13.
“We are confident the school will be ready.”
Police attended the school in the aftermath to take photographs of the scene.
Constable Grant Hope said: “The damage caused to the school will be both inconvenient and costly to repair particularly given that pupils will soon be returning after the holidays.
“We are grateful for the support of the community while inquiries were carried out.”
Last night, police confirmed a 17-year-old boy has been charged in connection with the incident. He is expected to appear in court at a later date.