STAFF at a council-run day centre in York were horrified to find a purpose-built glue-sniffing den had been set up in the grounds of their building.

The elaborate den, which was discovered in a courtyard behind the Yearsley Bridge Day Centre, in Huntington Road, was littered with empty glue pots.

It also featured a three-piece suite, which would have to have been carried over a 6ft-high fence, and what is believed to have been a makeshift alarm system, consisting of lengths of string with pieces of metal attached to it.

It is thought the early warning system was designed so that those using the den could flee if of anyone approached.

Drainpipes had also been pulled down from the building.

Police have been called in to investigate this latest incident. Officers have visited the site and photographed the scene. The den was then dismantled.

The shocking discovery at the centre, which provides day care for adults with learning disabilities, follows a year where more than £20,000-worth of damage has been done to the building in vandal attacks.

In that time, youths have climbed on to the roof, ripped up tiles and hurled them to the ground, windows have been smashed and drainpipes torn down.

Thousands of pounds have been spent improving security at the centre.

A City of York Council spokesman said: "Staff at the centre were quite shocked to find that someone had gone to such lengths to create this den in the grounds of the building, and equipped it with what appeared to be an elaborate early warning system.

"Most worrying was the fact they found empty glue tins lying around the spot."

Roger Grey, the council's assistant director for community services (community care), said: "We have been experiencing a number of problems at this site which is shared by a number of buildings.

"We have had several incidents of vandalism with windows smashed, youngsters climbing on roofs and this weekend's discovery of a 'den' in the garden of the Yearsley Bridge Centre.

"We are already working with the police to look at ways of trying to minimise this kind of vandalism and abuse."

Updated: 11:03 Tuesday, October 30, 2001