The Oxfam book bank in Modbury was set on fire last week, ruining numerous donations to the aid and development charity.

All that remained were the charred remains of numerous books, donated by members of the public to be sold at the Oxfam Bookshop in Fore Street, Kingsbridge.

Oxfam volunteer Sally Denham said: “Once a week, I collect the books from the Modbury book bank, and in the past I’ve found all sorts of weird and wonderful things, including Chinese takeaway food and beer cans.

“But this week, I found somebody had set fire to the books, and water had been poured into the book bank, possibly by someone else who had seen the fire.

“Almost all the books were ruined, burnt through and unsellable. One or two were protected in bags, but most have had to be thrown away.

“It’s a shame that people think this is acceptable, but we don’t want to put people off from donating,” Sally continued.

“We rely on donations to raise funds for Oxfam’s work all over the world. I’d like to reassure people, that their donations are a valuable resource. Please don’t be put off from donating.”

Sally emphasised that in her seven years collecting from the Modbury book bank, “there had only been three incidents.”

Vicky Armstrong, manager of the Oxfam Bookshop, Kingsbridge said: “Most people respect Oxfam book banks and they are a vital source of donations for us, but sadly occasionally something like this happens. It is a good idea to put book bank donations in bags to protect them, or you can drop them directly to us.”

In July 2015, the Gazette reported that rubbish was being dumped in the Oxfam book bank in the Cattlemarket car park, Kingsbridge, with volunteer Mike Knowles describing the presence of unwanted detritus as “a regular occurrence”.

At the time, Mike described how one Monday the book bank was so full, “there was hardly any room for books - there were clothes, lots of phone chargers, but mostly newspapers and magazines.”

Mike thought the reason for this was because there was no room in the paper recycling bin.

“I don’t mind picking up the books, I volunteer to do that, but when it comes to shifting rubbish, I’m not a dustman,” Mike added.