FRAUDSTERS have stolen £19,000 from a school.

Pupils and parents at Buckingham Park Primary in Shoreham have been taking part in all kinds of events to raise money for improvements to the playground.

They set up a charity called Buckingham Events and their efforts made thousands of pounds.

But the fund was targeted by criminals, leaving the charity and children out of pocket.

Jodie Dyer, from Buckingham Events, said: “To say we’re absolutely devastated is an understatement.

“It’s taken three years of incredibly hard work and the generosity and support of the families, the community and staff to raise this money.”

The fraud happened when criminals intercepted an invoice sent to the charity’s email. The charity paid what it thought was a legitimate invoice – but the funds were actually paid into a fraudulent account.

The charity said police and bank investigations conclude the money has now left the country and will not be recovered. Ms Dyer said: “To have been targeted in this way is heartbreaking, which is why we are setting up a crowdfunder to try and replace some, if not all, of this stolen money.

“We know how generous people can be and that if everyone could give what they can, we can raise a lot, so we’re asking the community to help us raise the funding we need for our children’s playground.”

The Conservative MP for East Worthing and Shoreham, Tim Loughton, said he was “appalled” by the crime and was determined the fraud would not go unpunished.

He has now offered to take the case up with police on behalf of the parents.

He said: “It is galling to see the efforts of parents and volunteers so easily undermined by opportunist criminals who are unfortunately becoming increasingly skilled at exploiting the internet especially for criminal activity.

“With fraud now the single largest type of crime in the UK I am afraid that this is by no means an isolated instance and it is vital that everyone does everything possible to keep their money safe online.”

Dave Briggs, chairman of the school’s governors, said the charity has their full support.

He said: “We all know how hard the Buckingham Events team works to raise money to improve the school for the benefit of our children.

“We hope the community will get behind them once again.

“We think it’s important that other schools and charities are aware of this type of targeted scam.

“This could have happened to anyone.”

The Argus understands the case has been referred to Action Fraud, which has then passed it to Cheshire Police.

Cases are passed on if there are “viable lines of enquiry”.

Buckingham Events will be at Tesco in the Holmbush Centre on Saturday, collecting donations.

Buckingham Events’ crowdfunding page can be found at gf.me/u/tcnw66