CRUEL vandals ripped the legs off toads and cut them open as they wrecked a school's outdoor classroom.

Shocked staff discovered the dead creatures among the debris after two consecutive weekends of vandalism in the grounds of a Bournemouth primary school.

Sheds were broken into, bird boxes and bug hotels thrown around and a desk hurled into the pond at Moordown St John's School in Vicarage Road.

Site manager Steve Tomkinson said the outdoor classroom is a treasured resource at the school and there are fears it will not be ready for use during the summer term.

He told the Daily Echo: "They didn't steal anything - it just appears to be mindless vandalism. Everything had been thrown around and the toads had all been killed.

"This happened two weekends running. We have a greenhouse which is made out of recycled plastic bottles and that was also damaged."

The damage was discovered after the weekends of February 24 and 25 and March 3 and 4 and was reported to police on both occasions.

Mr Tomkinson added: "The outdoor classroom is used by all the children at the school, aged between four and 11. It is in a coroner of the field and has bird boxes and other wildlife boxes. bug hotels and a greenhouse.

"The children look after seedlings there which are then transferred to our allotment."

He said staff at the school have done their best to clear up the mess and added: "One of the teachers even ended up in the pond because a desk had been thrown into it.

"The lining of the pond was ripped by the desk so it could end up costing a lot of money to repair it."

Police confirmed the incidents had been reported to them and anyone with information is urged to call Dorset Police on 101, quoting incident number 5:115, or the free and anonymous Crimestoppers line on 0800 555 111.