SECURITY has been stepped up at a Darlington school after vandals tried to set fire to a new learning facility.

The attempted arson attack was carried out at Dodmire Infant School and damaged a cottage erected in the grounds to promote awareness of environmental issues.

The £15,000 Goldilocks Cottage was built as a learning resource and play area only two weeks before intruders scaled a security fence and attempted to set it alight.

The cottage, which has proved extremely popular with pupils, suffered minor damage. However, the school has called in a security firm to make regular checks on the area in an effort to prevent a repeat attack.

Headteacher Maureen Dixon said: "It was the children who discovered it and they were really upset.

"My worry is that they have had a go at setting it alight one night and might come back to do it again.

"They have tried to bash it in as well because there were some marks there.

"It just makes me sad that anyone would want to do this to something which is supposed to be doing good for the children.

"We got security people in because the police couldn't guarantee that they would make checks on several occasions."

Mrs Dixon said she feared that any fire in the grounds could have got out of control and spread further.

Following the incident, which happened on Monday night, letters have been sent to all parents with children at the school asking them to be vigilant and report anything suspicious.

A spokesman for the local education authority said: "Security is likely to be there for some time. We're asking people to be vigilant because this is for the little ones."

Earlier this year, two teenage boys who set fire to the roof of Middleton St George Primary School were locked up for two years.

They burned waste paper to spark a blaze which caused £356,000-worth of damage.

Anyone with information about the incident at Dodmire Infant School, or who sees anything suspicious, is asked to call Darlington police on (01325) 467681.