Vandalised art trail penguins repaired

Jess Perrin, an artist who is repainting the sculptures, said the vandalism had been "disheartening"

Penguin sculptures created for a charity art trail and vandalised over the summer are being restored.

The Waddle of Worcester, a project to raise money for St Richard's Hospice, launched in the city in July with 80 penguins.

But two penguins were damaged just after the trail launched and three more were targeted in August, with one recovered by firefighters from the River Severn.

Jess Perrin, an artist who has been repainting the damaged sculptures, said it was “really nice” to be on the team that was making them “as good as new again”.

Ms Perrin added that some artists would have spent more than 300 hours making their sculptures and “to have your hard work be damaged like that, and seen as having no value, it really is disheartening".

The art trail, which features 40 large penguin statues and 40 chick statues, will run until 15 September. The large penguin statues will then be auctioned off to raise money for the hospice.

The hospice’s previous art trails involving elephants and giraffes have collectively raised more than £700,000.

In order to restore the penguins, Ms Perrin explained that a logistics company first had to take them off the trail. The sculptures were then assessed, sent to fibreglass specialists for repairs, and finally sent to painters.

Sara Matthews, the hospice’s business development manager, said the sculptures would be “spick and span"

Sara Matthews, the hospice’s business development manager, said the vandalism this summer had been “absolutely devastating, not just for me but for the whole team”.

But she added the charity would now ensure the sculptures were “looking spick and span" and "ready for the farewell event".

Ms Matthews said it cost over £12m a year for the hospice to operate and it supported 3,500 people across Worcestershire each year.