Children as young as two are having to go without milk after a crate containing 150 cartons of the drink was stolen from outside a school's gates.

Staff from Briary Primary in Greenhill Road, Herne Bay, were shocked to find the second of their bi-weekly deliveries had been snatched in the early hours of yesterday.

The theft means the youngsters, as well as Briary's pre-school children, could be without their daily dose of calcium for the rest of the week.

Head teacher Nicky Murrell said: "We were dismayed and shocked by the fact that someone had come and taken milk that’s clearly there for children.

"It’s made us all quite disheartened. Parents are outraged and want to do what they can.

“I think there’s a mixture of disbelief and puzzlement among the children that anyone would do that. Children tend to think the best of people and this has made them question that.”

Mrs Murrell says she is unaware of any other thefts similar to this taking place during her time working at the Greenhill school.

She has reported it to the police - but says it was not caught on CCTV.

“I know some parents who live nearby are looking at their own cameras to see if they’ve caught the person on their systems,” Mrs Murrell added.

“It wouldn’t have been easy to pick up and walk down the road with a crate of that size.

“Somebody somewhere has got a number of Cool Milk cartons, so someone must know who’s got it.”

An email from the school sent to parents yesterday warned that pupils may be without their milk for the rest of the week.

But the company that delivers the cartons has issued a refund for the stolen drinks and promised to send another delivery tomorrow.

Over the last day, Mrs Murrell has also been inundated with offers from parents and residents wanting to donate their own milk to the school.

“The response from the community has been incredible,” she continued.

“Herne Bay Morrisons have also been down this morning and they’ve brought us lots and lots of treats for the children and staff.”

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