A PRIMARY school preparing to celebrate its centenary has been targeted by thieves.

More than 20 stone caps were placed on pillars along the perimeter of Elton Primary School when it was built in 1911.

And after being in place for 98 years, 10 of them have been removed by thieves in the past few months.

The stones are worth very little due to their age and weathered condition, but it will cost thousands of pounds to replace them all.

Headteacher Tony Emmott said: “It is a shame that these stones have started to disappear. We will be celebrating our centenary soon and we want to retain as many of the school’s original features as we can.

“We will replace the stones, but the new ones will be made from modern materials and will be less desirable. It would be too expensive to replace them with old stones and they would just get stolen again.”

Mr Emmott believes that people disguised as workmen may have taken the stones, as they would be difficult to remove.

He is now asking neighbours close to the Alston Street school to look out for the thieves.

He said: “I want to warn people that this isn’t legitimate work. It isn’t planned work and no-one should be removing these stone caps.”

Anyone with information about the thefts can contact the school on 0161 705 2674 or the police on 0161 872 5050.