THE offices of a Bordon-based charity, which provides cheap furniture to low-income families in Alton, were broken into just after Christmas. Last Thursday, trespassers caused £500 worth of damage at the unit on the Woolmer Industrial Estate used by the charity Furniture Helpline, which was celebrating its first anniversary since avoiding closure. Police are investigating evidence left by the would-be thieves, who injured themselves and destroyed the front office of the charity's headquarters, but ran away empty handed after failing to break into a locked adjoining warehouse. The bungled burglary was one of four known break-ins on the estate suspected to have been carried out in the early hours of Thursday, December 28, by the same people. The burglars cut themselves scrambling through a shattered window and left a trail of blood in the premises they entered. Furniture Helpline worker Gerald Robinson said this was the first time the charity's base had been broken into, although its van, needed to keep the service going, had been raided several times for spare parts. Mr Robinson said he would be sad to find out that the culprits had been among, or were friends of, the 1,800 people in three counties who had benefited from the charity's service in 2006. He added that, if the perpetrators were caught and convicted, he would try to arrange for them to perform community-service sentences, repairing the damage they caused so they could understand the consequences of their actions. According to police, the raid was carried out at around 3 am by two or more people targeting units in one corner of the estate, including one which has experienced six break-ins in as many months. After failing to force open a secluded delivery door at Foods of Europe, the would-be thieves smashed the window of a unit opposite the Furniture Helpline office, cutting themselves and smearing blood across the room. It is unclear whether they stole anything, but they quickly moved on to the charity's base, again smashing a pane of glass and injuring themselves further, leaving blood-stained handprints on the walls. Unable to prise open a locked interior door leading to the warehouse, it appears they panicked and tried using £30 worth of bleach and strong cleaning fluids, from a toilet near the door, to clean their wounds. After spilling bleach and blood over every surface in the toilet, the culprits blocked the sink with towels and left the taps running before fleeing the scene. Helpline staff were due to be on holiday until Tuesday, January 2, but a volunteer mistakenly turned up for work at noon and raised the alarm, by which time an estimated 500 gallons of water had flooded the office, spilling out into the car park. After surveying the damage, Mr Rob-inson said it would cost around £500 to replace warped flooring, weakened furniture and a broken window. He told The Herald: "It would be really annoying to know someone we have supported has carried this out to us. Why do you do something like this to an organisation which is trying to help people? "We take people referred from the Probation Service here, and I would like to see these people (the trespassers) carry out community service here. It's the only way of educating them." A police spokesman said that forensic samples had been taken from the scene, and lines of inquiry were being investigated. Established 12 years ago, the Furniture Helpline supports low-income families in parts of north east Hampshire, Waverley in Surrey and West Sussex by redistributing previously owned, good-condition furniture and electrical appliances at affordable prices. The charity faced closure last winter after its van became unuseable and it could not afford a new one, despite support from East Hampshire District Council, Waverley Borough Council and local town and parish councils. A £38,000 National Lottery grant was awarded just in time to buy a new Luton van, so volunteers could still deliver, in 2006, 4,000 items to more than 600 households, more than a third of which were in Bordon. For a small fee, the Furniture Helpline collects unwanted furniture and electrical appliances in good condition, reconditions and safety tests them, and then offers them for sale at low prices. Prices are reduced again for those on income support and sometimes provided free of charge for referrals through other agencies, such as Victim Support. Chairman Peter Marsh said: "We'll sell to anyone who wants to buy, but our main purpose is to provide good-quality items to local families with limited income." Mr Marsh said the Furniture Helpline needed volunteers to help collect and deliver furniture, and donated goods. For details call 01420 489000 or e-mail [email protected]">[email protected].
