Plans for a baby memorial garden have ground to a halt after vandals went on the rampage.

A group of youths trashed the site in St Margaret’s Street, Rochester, damaging an old church wall, threw stones, smashed greenhouses, let off fireworks, daubed graffiti and set fire to piles of wood.

Now proposals for a quiet spot for parents to mourn the loss of a child have had to be put on hold.

Kelly Wells set up Making Miracles after her daughter was born with a dangerous heart condition.

The charity supports parents who have experienced miscarriage, stillbirth or infant death and Kelly, with the help of others, gathered £20,000 to create a special place for bereaved parents.

"They let off fireworks and poppers, and left people terrified and thinking somebody was firing a gun. I don’t feel safe there now and that’s not how it should be. It’s mindless, uncalled for vandalism." - Kelly Wells

Despite a sign on the front of the plot explaining what it was earmarked for, yobs scaled over the old church wall and caused chaos.

Kelly said: “They damaged the church wall, which is hundreds of years old, and then hurled the stones off it over the fence and into people’s allotments next door, smashing greenhouses.

“They let off fireworks and poppers, and left people terrified and thinking somebody was firing a gun.

“I don’t feel safe there now and that’s not how it should be.

“It’s mindless, uncalled for vandalism. They graffitied the wall, pulled down fences, and even stole people’s deck chairs and wooden poles from the allotments, which they threw on a bonfire in the garden.

“We certainly can’t put anything in the garden now that we had planned, like a book of remembrance, until it’s all made fully secure.”

A strong fence is now needed around the perimeter. It is expected to costs thousands.

Last week, the Medway Messenger reported the charity’s success after raising £10,000 and being awarded another £10,000 from the Aviva Community Fund.

They finally had enough to get going and the garden was expected to be completed this year after people had worked hard clearing the space of dense brambles and nettles.

Kelly added: “Mums and dads supporting this have said they don’t want the money for the garden to be spent on fencing. It means we’re going to have to raise more than we expected.”

There were a number of people hanging around the area, but one boy, dressed only in shorts, was caught on camera stoking the fire, some time late on Thursday afternoon.

To help the cause, email kelly@makingmiracles.org.uk or visit www.makingmiracles.org.uk.

Police confirmed they are investigating and asked anyone with information to call 01634 792209 quoting reference XY/23157/15.

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