VANDALS have gone on a wrecking spree at a children's play area in Great Lever.

White paint has been splattered across swings in the park off Nugent Road. And the burnt out remains of cans and rubbish at the bottom of a slide looks like they were used to start a fire.

A black tar-like substances has also been dribbled around the park and the contents of a rubbish bin in the park have been tipped on to the ground.

The trail of damage was spotted by a resident from Pennington Road on Saturday afternoon and has now been reported to Bolton Council.

The resident, who did not wished to be named, said the park, located behind St William of York Primary School, was a popular spot for families.

They added: "I regularly walk past there when I'm walking my dog and I've never seen anything like it before. I just can't believe it.

"Rubbish had been set on fire and it looks like they were trying to burn the slide and there was white paint all over the swings used by the little tots.

"There were cans of beer and all sorts, I can't believe people have been doing things like this.

"When it's sunny there's always people going to the that park.

"The youngsters like that park a lot, it's such a shame what's happened.

Bolton Council confirmed that it was aware of the damage to the play area and will reporting the incident to the police.

A spokesperson added: "We will be repairing the play area as soon as possible."