Peterborough school left 'incredibly angry' after thieves steal £2000 solar panel powering Book Bus

Upon returning to school from the long Bank Holiday weekend, the children and staff of St Augustine’s CE (VA) Junior School, in Woodston, were incredibly upset to learn that the solar panel, which provided heat and light to their beloved Book Bus, had been stolen. The thieves had cut the wires and taken the solar panel, which the school had saved £2000 to pay for, rendering the eco-friendly light and heating system useless.

Staff, children, parents and governors at the school had saved over £12000 to convert the old bus into a library, a process which was featured on Channel 4’s Tool Club in September last year.

In June last year, the school converted an old nationwide Coaches vehicle to use as a new library and reading area. Volunteers and several local tradespeople gave their time to help transform the space inside into a useable space for the children.

The large solar panel was located just outside of the bus but was stolen last week.

The school tweeted: “We are all absolutely devastated to learn that our solar panel from the Book Bus has been stolen, meaning the children no longer have heat and light.

"Please share far and wide and let either us or the police know if you have any information. Thank you.”

In an email to parents, headteacher Sam Brunt added: “We are very sorry to have to inform you that the solar panel from our Book Bus has been stolen.

"The solar panel provided light and heat, so the children could use the Book Bus all year round.

"As you know, an awful lot of work went into making our Book Bus an inspirational place for children to read and engage with books.

"I’m sure you can all imagine just how upset we are but also incredibly angry that someone stooped to the level of stealing from a children’s library.

"If you have any information that may help, please contact either us or the police directly.”