A BUSY doctor's surgery is being turned into "Fort Knox" because of constant abuse by young vandals.

Doctors at Rawcliffe Surgery, in Water Lane, want to put up six-foot high metal railings to protect the facility after 24 windows were broken causing more than £5,000-worth of damage

It is believed the culprits used a ball-bearing gun in the weekend attack.

Dr Joan Meakins, who has been at the surgery for ten years, said the "spiteful" damage was just the latest in a shocking series of incidents at the centre.

They include:

Live frogs posted through the letterbox

Drainpipes ripped down

Graffiti sprayed on the walls

Bins set alight and doorbells melted with lighters

Beer cans, toys and other junk thrown onto the surgery roof.

Dr Meakins said: "The damage has been a lot worse over the summer.

"Nearby residents think that it's teenagers coming in from outside the area to congregate at the surgery. I get mouthfuls of abuse when I tell them to move on. The metal fencing will look dreadful, but what can we do?"

Dr Meakins said the surgery also planned to install more CCTV cameras to get a clearer image of the vandals.

"The police do try to move them on, but they can't be here all the time," she said.

"The broken windows were the final straw - it's becoming extremely tedious."

A spokesman for the Priory Medical Group, which runs the surgery, said: "This is just the norm for this area.

"It's extremely frustrating, but the police don't seem to be bothered. We regret putting the railings up because it's nice to have something attractive that people want to come into.

"It will make the surgery look like Fort Knox, but we can't keep claiming from the insurance company. There's nothing else we can do."

A spokesman for York police confirmed the vandalism had been reported and was under investigation.

Updated: 09:54 Friday, September 30, 2005