Taxpayers have been forced to shell out almost £60,000 in recent years on repairs for public buildings damaged by vandals or during attempted break-ins.
A total of 170 requests for urgent repairs were logged with Aberdeenshire Council between 2014 and 2017 at schools, care homes and community amenities throughout the region.
Not all of the recorded incidents were thought to have been criminal, with some repairs needed for general wear and tear.
But the records reveal the huge scale of the cost to local taxpayers to clean up the mess left by deliberate acts.
The highest repair bill recorded for intentional damage over the four year period was £4,936.49 for a building in Alford.
All of the facilities based in a toilet block at Haughton Country Park – including the urinals, sinks and toilet bowls – were smashed up by vandals in 2014.
Large bills also racked up at Inverallochy School during the same year, when 10 windows were broken, and at Redcloak Recycling Centre in Stonehaven last January when a specially-fitted £1,200 shed door was damaged during a break-in.
Repair teams were also called out to Peterhead 14 times at a cost of £3,755.09 between March 2015 and March 2017.
At least 24 windows were smashed over this period, accounting for 80% of the total bill.
In addition, a wall needed to be repainted after “very offensive” graffiti was left in October 2015, and doors in two science classrooms were kicked in last February.
In some cases money was spent on preventative measures taken to protect derelict buildings.
More than £7,500 was spent boarding up windows at the former Alford Academy in 2016, while similar work worth just under £1,600 was undertaken at the old Drumoak School last year.
Other repair requests included fixing a park’s wooden pavilion, with the log noting: “Please make secure as vandals have tried to break in twice.”
Councillor Mark Findlater said: “These disgraceful and mindless acts of vandalism, as well as costing the taxpayer money, disrupt the use of these buildings and facilities and deprive the communities they are in of their use. Children’s education is hindered with the loss of classrooms for example.
“Vandalism on council properties affects us all so please report to the police any information you have to the 101 number or there is a confidential line you can also use. Nearly all of the Intelligence that the police receive comes from the general public, so don’t leave it for someone else to do.”
