A GROUP of people flouted the coronavirus lockdown rules to gather in a Ledbury park, remove a bench, take it to a nearby woods and set it on fire.

They committed the initial offence at the Walled Garden in Church Street – a popular place for people to exercise and walk dogs during the current coronavirus restrictions – where they took the bench and carried it to Dog Hill Wood and set it alight before having a social gathering – the photo here shows the aftermath.

This follows our report last week on young people gathering in the Walled Garden, breaking the government's rules to stem the spread of Covid-19.

As a result, the local authorities were looking at closing the garden in a bid to curb anti-social behaviour – but they have now decided to keep the beloved town beauty spot open.

A spokesman for Ledbury Town Council said: “ It is with great sadness that we must report that a bench has been vandalised and used to start a fire in Dog Hill Wood for a social gathering.

“For some residents, the walled garden is an area where they can take advantage of the outdoors while practicing social distancing. It is a great shame that some do not respect this.

“We cannot stress enough how important it is to follow the government’s guidelines and that residents of all ages should not be out socialising in groups at this time.”

Councillor Phillip Howells, mayor of Ledbury, said: “This is concerning but incidents like this are thankfully rare.

“Whoever has done it would’ve had a long uphill walk to the woods and they’ve taken advantage of the lockdown to not be seen.

“We’ve looked at the pros and cons of closing the walled garden in response but have decided to keep it open as many people stick to the rules and use the garden for their daily exercise. “

Resident Yvonne White, 67, said: “It’s just mindless vandalism. The teenagers doing it must be bored - their parents need to get a grip on what their kids are doing.”

Police patrols will now be stepped up in the area to deter anymore criminal behaviour.

The government wants everyone to stay at home apart from “essential” travel, which includes one hour of daily exercise near to home.