Staff at the Scope charity shop in Devizes have spoken of their distress after thieves broke into their store in on Sunday morning.

The raiders smashed into the shop in Maryport Street and helped themselves to CDs and other items before breaking into the store room at the back to steal donated clothing and stuffing it into the bags and suitcases they had brought with them.

The town’s CCTV system caught them carrying their haul into Monday Market Street at 9.20am and making their getaway.

Sgt Ronnie Lungu, at Devizes police station, said: “It is a pretty despicable thing to steal from a charity, especially one that does such good work for disabled children.

“The items taken are fairly low value but the damage these people have caused is immense.”

Manager Karen Carr said the break-in had hit the morale of her staff very hard.

She said: “The staff and volunteers here are all feeling pretty emotional at the moment.

“The team work so hard to prepare and sell the items that people in the local community have donated to us out of the kindness of their hearts, and we are absolutely devastated by the break-in.

“The money from the items stolen would have gone towards supporting Scope’s work with disabled children, adults and their families.

“Plus, we’ve also had to cover the cost of repairing the damage caused by the burglars. It just isn’t right.

“But we are a strong team and we’re pulling together to get over this setback. The shop is still open for business, and we hope that the local community will get behind us and donate any unwanted goods to help us replenish our stocks.”

Scope works with sufferers of cerebral palsy and their families to improve their quality of life and employment opportunities.

Police have appealed for witnesses to the crime and any information can be given through the 101 non-emergency line or confidentially through Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.