CCTV cameras could to fitted around Weymouth swimming pool to detract vandal attacks on play equipment at the Marsh.

One of the latest attacks resulted in a piece of equipment, worth £3,700, being written off and the destruction of a rubberised safety mat around a trampoline.

The company which made the destroyed hip-hop device were amazed it had been so badly damaged. Deputy town clerk Matt Ryan said the company believed that it must have been a sustained mass attack by a number of individuals to cause so much damage.

Town councillors were told that officers had thought twice about replacing the equipment, fearing that it would be attacked again, but decided to do so.

Parks and open spaces manager Tara Williams said estimates were now being sought to extend the CCTV to the front and rear of the swimming pool, but said that finding the funding for it might be a problem because a pot of money from the next phase of Curtis Fields development, which should be available for community projects, was not likely to be available for some time.

Cllr Gill Taylor questioned whether enough had been done by the previous borough council to engage with young people who use the area at night to see what they might want there.

“We do need to talk to the teenagers who hang around there…we need to go back and ask what they want. It might be something as simple as a shelter,” she told a meeting of the town council services committee.

Cllr Alex Fuhrmann agreed with talking to youngsters who use the area, but suggested it might be best left to professionals, such as youth workers. He also warned that if promises were made to do something to the group they should be kept.

“If you tell teenagers you are going to do something and don’t do it immediately it doesn’t mean anything to them.”

The council heard that work was progressing on the masterplan for the Marsh.

Works so far have included a multi-use games area, new seating, the removal of the derelict running track, installation of a drop kerb, a new play area and fencing. The total cost of the project to date is £185,000.