ARSONISTS caused hundreds of pounds-worth of damage in a Blackburn park, just yards from a state-of-the-art CCTV system designed to deter vandals.

The £10,000 four-camera system in Corporation Park was installed last year after vandals caused £18,000-worth of damage to the park's listed cast iron conservatory.

Although officers at Blackburn with Darwen Council say they have seen a dramatic fall in incidents of vandalism, the cameras failed to stop Thursday's attack.

The vandals destroyed litter bins and park bench and smashed windows in the conservatory.

Blackburn with Darwen Council has secured a provisional £2million lottery cash to refurbish the park and install more cameras. And they are now hoping to install cameras in other parks in the borough, particularly Bold Venture Park, in Darwen.

Tom Wilson, head of the council's outdoor amenities department, said: "Vandals set fire to two refuse bins and a bench in Corporation Park. We have reported the incident to the police and the CCTV tape will be handed over to them."

Coun Par'vaiz Awan, who represents the Corporation Park ward, said: "As far as I know things have improved recently with great strides being made to make the park a more pleasant place to be."

The park has suffered from a number of serious problems in recent years. The Victorian playing fields are a popular meeting place for teenage gangs and drug addicts. There have also been complaints of sex pests prowling the park and surrounding area.

A police spokesman confirmed they were investigating the incident.