A headteacher has spoken of her anger after burglars smashed their way into classrooms for the third time in a month.

Gillian James, headteacher of Ilkley Grammar School, called on the community to come forward with information and appealed to the burglars to consider the consequences of their actions.

The intruders, said to be wearing hooded tops and balaclavas, smashed their way into the new block of the Cowpasture Road school on Sunday evening.

They broke into four locked classrooms in the second-floor languages department, splitting the doors from their hinges. The classrooms were out of bounds to students for the day as the damage was repaired. The burglars left empty-handed, but the school suspects they were looking for laptops or other computer equipment, which have been targeted in previous raids.

Mrs James said: “I feel very angry on behalf of our students. They don’t deserve this and if any of the burglars read this, I hope they think again about the impact of their actions.

“All ICT equipment is marked and worth very little to a thief – for learning it is essential.”

The school is now in talks with police about further security improvements. Anyone with information should call Airedale and North Bradford Police on 0845 6060606.