YOUNG archers were left devastated by the theft of their bows and arrows.

The equipment was taken from Winterfold House School, Chaddesley Corbett, where the club meets, with the thieves' haul including 12 bows and 138 arrows.

A rechargeable halogen lamp and Cosmo yellow and black portable generator were also taken in the theft, carried out between Wednesday, May 18 and 6.45pm on Wednesday, May 25.

Daphne Greenwood, the club's chairman, said: "The theft of our equipment has had a devastating impact on the club.

"To start with, 10 junior members turned up to shoot on Wednesday evening, only to find all the bows and arrows had been stolen.

"They were not able to shoot that night but, more disappointingly, they have little prospect of doing so in the future, as we are a young club and we simply do not have the resources to replace this equipment."

Police have expressed their concerns over the dangers posed by the archery equipment being in the wrong hands.

PC Tim MacRae, of Wyre Forest police, said: "Bows and arrows are, clearly, very dangerous items and we are appealing for anyone with information regarding this burglary to give us a call.

"This was a large amount of equipment to take and it may be that a vehicle was used by the offenders. We would ask anyone who noticed anything that might be connected to this incident or sees archery equipment for sale in suspicious circumstances to get in touch."

The bows taken were described as Takedown Recurve bows, with red, blue or orange plastic handles and metal or red and black plastic sights.

The arrows had red shafts and silver metal tips and red, orange or yellow feathers. The total value of the archery equipment was more than £1,750.

Police can be contacted on 08457 444888 or, anonymously, on 0800 555111.