STAFF at a Radcliffe primary school are urging anyone who has recently bought a second-hand laptop to check the hard drive.

At the end of last month, a laptop, books and materials were stolen from the car of a teacher at St Marys Primary School, in Belgrave Street, while the vehicle was in the car park.

And while the school is counting the financial cost of the equipment being stolen, many hours of preparatory work by the teachers for the new school term, saved on the hard drive of the Dell Latitude system, has been lost.

Headteacher Mr Paul Heaton said that the teacher was preparing to take the work and equipment home with her when the robbery happened. The window was smashed and the items were taken from the vehicle.

He said: "If anyone is offered a second-hand laptop in the Radcliffe area, please could we ask that they check the contents of the hard drive and let us have the work back.

"This incident has caused a lot of upset at the school."

Anyone with any information about the laptop should contact the school on 723 4210, or at stmarys radcliffe@bury.gov.uk