A volunteer gardener says she is “gutted” after a landmark statue and planter was desecrated by vandals on Friday night.
The planter, located on the corner of Regent Road and New Street, had only been bedded in by Sarah Walmsley two weeks ago and the metallic ‘Fred’ structure on top – well known for the ‘hair’ that sprouted randomly from a solar fountain on top – erected just a year ago.
But both were subject to a wanton act of vandalism late on Friday night that left uprooted plants scattered and ‘Fred’ damaged beyond repair. Greater Manchester Police told us they had no record of the incident, and it’s not yet known whether there were any CCTV cameras in the area.
Below: The planter where ‘Fred’ stood, and (above) before and after the vandalism
Walmsley, who leads a team of volunteer gardeners in the town through the Altrincham Community Team and Altrincham in Bloom initiatives, said: “A couple of people have had a go before but haven’t been able to shift it because we did put in some security measures, but this time somebody has climbed on top of the whole thing.
“They’ve pulled the entire thing apart and pulled all the plants out, there’s soil everywhere and it’s a mess. It’s deeply gutting.
“Fred is kaput. We’ll paper mache the repairs but he’ll have to be on display inside a shop window, he’ll never function again. Fred was funny – not everyone likes plants but he made people smile and he was a bit of a figurehead for the Altrincham in Bloom campaign.”
Below: ‘Fred’ is now said to be irreparable
Walmsley admitted that while such vandalism “does get us all down”, she was determined to carry on: “I’m one of those weebles – you can keep on pushing but I won’t fall down, I just come back harder.”
She appealed for more volunteers and said the town now had a judging date now for North West in Bloom, the RHS gardening competition.
Below: Volunteer Sarah Walmsley at the scene on the corner of Regent Road and New Street
Last year, Altrincham Community Team received a coveted Gold Award in the ‘large town’ category on Friday, October 24, as well as being recognised with the ‘Best Community Effort in the North West’ and best town centre community planter awards.
“It’s good for us and we all need to get behind it,” added Walmsley.
Interested volunteers should get in touch using the form here.
