ANGRY and upset residents have rallied together after vandals destroyed a fence at an “iconic” Hampshire church.

In an act of disrespect, wooden panels were kicked in and snapped at St Andrew’s Church in Hamble.

The fence lining the church graveyard on the High Street was completely destroyed during the incident that happened between 9.30pm and 10.30pm last Wednesday.

No one has been arrested and no damage was done to the church itself, however, residents have now come together to raise funds to fix the mess.

Hamble residents, Vicky McPherson and Michelle Carroll set up a fundraising page over the weekend.

At the time of writing, it has raised more than £300 with an ultimate target of £2,000.

Michelle, 51, said: “I was angry when I first heard about the vandalism. The church is a symbol of Hamble. To have something as iconic as the church damaged is very upsetting. Whether you go to church or not the damage is there for everyone to see. As residents we decided to get together and show the community that we intend to do something positive. I plan to raise money by going round businesses in the area. We are deciding our next steps and how to replace the fence. Hamble is a lovely place to live in.

A statement on the JustGiving page says: “Weʼre raising £2,000 to erect a new fence outside our church of St Andrew’s in Hamble village which was recently damaged due to vandalism. Recently our pretty church of St Andrew’s was the target of pointless vandalism. The vandals managed to damage the front fence and leave a trail of broken wooden posts. We would like to raise money towards rebuilding a new fence maybe out of metal or iron. .”

A police spokesperson said: “We received a report this morning (Aug 30) regarding damage to fence panels at St Andrews Church, High Street, which happened between 9.30pm and 10.30pm on August 28.”

To donate visit www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/michelle-carroll-2.