Congregants’ children vandalised Borehamwood and Elstree Synagogue’s play area over Yom Kippur, the shul has claimed. Yet an email appeal for the culprits to come forward and contribute to the cost of repairs has to date met with a zero response.

Honorary officers studied the CCTV tapes in an unavailing bid to name and shame. “We saw a lot of children playing in an area where they should not have been on yomtov, but unfortunately, we were unable to identify any particular child responsible for the considerable damage to the play equipment or the broken entry gate,” Borehamwood chair Anthony Arnold said.

“Sadly this means that the shul will have to bear the roughly £500 cost of the repairs — not a vast sum, but it comes at a time when we are looking to save every penny to make our finances add up.”

He hopes that the email, which went out to just over half the community, will at least impress on congregants that the play area is strictly off limits on Shabbat and festivals.

It is also intended to remind parents of their responsibility for the behaviour of their children on synagogue premises.