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A mother has been left furious after vandals scratched insults onto a van specifically designed for her wheelchair-bound daughter.

Diane Atkins, 55, from Grimsby was shocked to discover her daughter’s mobility vehicle had been vandalised, mocking the fact that the van was designed for wheelchair access.

In a message to the culprits she said: "Not only did you dent it but your Christmas message of good cheer is beyond disgusting - scratched in to the paint work it says 'Spazzy Spaz van ha ha' plus a big cross on the door."

Diane said: “I was out and about, I thought it might have been done while I was at Asda, but after getting in touch with them my van couldn’t be seen by the CCTV.

“I saw the scratch on my door and thought that was the worst of it, but it wasn’t until I walked around the back and saw the full extent of it.

(Image: Corey Bedford)

“At first I was really upset, but then I was furious. What satisfaction can you get out of doing something like that?

“The scratches are down to the metal, we’ve already had it checked over last night, so it’s going to cost a lot to repaint it. They’re also having to order replacement parts too.

“Thankfully I can go through my insurance and my excess is only £100, but it’s the last thing you need right before Christmas.”

Bethany, Diane’s daughter, is 16-years-old and has cerebral palsy. Due to her condition, she uses a wheelchair and cannot walk unaided.

Diane said: “Beth is such a lovely girl, she doesn’t have a bad bone in her body. She even helps out doing charity work with me on Christmas Day for Not Home Alone.

“We pick up people for the charity and take them to Oaklands, where they get wined and dined and can spend the day socialising with people. The van helps because it means we can pick people up that need wheelchairs.

(Image: Jon Corken)

“She loves talking to people, so she goes around socialising with people there, she’s quite a socialite, Beth.”

The van is provided through Motability, a scheme which helps people with disabilities exchange their mobility allowance for a vehicle to lease or buy.

Diane said: “Thankfully, Motability are going to provide us with a courtesy van while ours is getting work done to it. Because it is on lease from them, everything is getting sorted really quickly. There has already been a guy out to inspect the van and do a quote the next day since it happened.”

After the vandalism happened, Diane also took to social media to post about the damage done to the van. This has since attracted hundreds of reactions online, resulting in hundreds of messages of support being sent to her and her daughter.

Diane said: “I’ve had lots of people sharing my post and getting in touch with me to show their support. I don’t always like social media, it can often be really bad, but there are times when it can be really good and supportive.”

An investigation has been launched into the circumstances of the incident and, while no arrests have been made at this stage, Humberside Police are appealing to anyone who may have been in the area to get in touch.

Sergeant Nick Bunker from Humberside Police’s Community Safety Unit said: “This was an extremely distasteful and upsetting incident and we’ve spoken with the family to ensure they know where to get specialist support should they need it.

“This incident happened in the car park of a supermarket in Holles Street, Grimsby, between 3pm and 3.40pm on Wednesday, December 11.

“If you saw anyone in the area who was acting suspiciously, please get in touch with us and let us know. We take all reports of hate crime extremely seriously and will act on any reports given to us.

“We want more people to come forward, speak out and tell us about any incidents. The more we know, the more we can do. Crimes like these are extremely personal in nature and target the very core of people’s identity.

“Our priority is to support and protect vulnerable victims, but we also work to educate offenders. Please don’t suffer in silence.”

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