'Callous' vandals condemned after damage to Offaly autism support centre
THE manager of a care facility has asked the public to help identify the mindless vandals who have been targeting the premises in Tullamore.
RehabCare provides an autism specific service for people aged between 18 and 40 at Eiscir Meadows on the outskirts of the town.
Amy Scott, community services manager, Eiscir Meadows and Tus Nua Day services, has stressed the negative impact the vandalism has been having on the service users.
Ms Scott said the Eiscir Meadows facility is focused on promoting a person-centred approach by supporting each person to exercise choice while availing of the local resources within the community.
“A strong emphasis is placed on assisting all attendees to reach their full potential in an unstructured and enjoyable way using the New Directions philosophy while embracing a culture of positivity," said Ms Scott.
“In recent months the centre has been subjected to several distressing incidents whereby the staff have arrived in the morning to see vandalism and criminal damage to the garden and polytunnel.”
A trampoline has been broken three times.
“Our funding is to support the people who attended our centre, not to be spent on repairing damage caused by some callous individuals.”
Ms Scott is appealing to anyone who has witnessed the vandalism, or who has any information about it, to contact the gardai in Tullamore.