TODAY the Shuttle Times and News is appealing to readers to help us raise £80,000 to rebuild a Scout centre torched by vandals.

We have teamed up with Kidderminster and District Scout Council to launch Operation Covert to replace a vital facility for the children of Wyre Forest.

The mission is simple - to create a 21st century base for district Scouts at the Rhydd Covert campsite near Bewdley following a fire this month.

The new building is crucial - without it, the sprawling 50-acre site has no base and the character-forming experiences of thousands of children from Wyre Forest and beyond will be diminished.

Scouts have always been at the heart of the community, from the volunteers who run the activities at Rhydd Covert to the multitudes of children who pledge their time to learning values of self-discipline, respect and teamwork.

Now the Scouts need the help of the community more than ever. As our shocking pictures showed last week, the building has been totally gutted by an attack being treated as arson by police.

It will be demolished and rebuilt - but the Scouts have precious little money.

That's where the whole community comes in. We want people to pledge what they can - no donation is too small - and find inventive ways of raising money.

Perhaps you can organise a jumble sale or sell cakes among your neighbours or take on a challenge you have been thinking of doing but never had a cause.

Scout and Guide groups, youth clubs, businesses, Women's Institutes, pensioners' groups, professional people's organisations such as rotary clubs - these are just some of the groups we hope will back Operation Covert - and it's also a good chance to raise the profile of your organisation.

Tell us what you are doing to raise funds and the Shuttle/Times and News will try to feature you in our regular round-up of Operation Covert activities as the appeal gathers steam.

District commissioner for the Scout Council, Dave Denton, said the campaign was vital to replace the building, used for shelter, sleepovers, Scout group meetings and cooking for busy activity weekends, which attract up to 2,500 youngsters.

He said: "This is one occasion when Scouting needs the community to put something back, to enable us to restore the facilities we have been so used to using.

"Scouting provides so much and we need people to help us put right this terrible wrong."

Site manager, Mark Woodward, said the Scout Council had been unable to obtain insurance for the building and the people of Wyre Forest were now the last hope for the centre.

He said: "Rhydd is part of the community, everybody knows Rhydd. There must be thousands and thousands of people down the generations who have benefited from Rhydd in some way.

"Now we need the community to give us their backing."

To find out more about Rhydd Covert and how you can help the appeal, see article headed "Thriving Centre for youngsters" in this section.