THIS was the first of the Post Office's new-style vandal-proof telephone boxes which were being rolled out across Oxfordshire in May 1970.

But before the engineers were even able to put in the telephone and coin box, the vandals had been at work.

They managed to smash one of the three triplex-glass windows.

The new box was put in Berinsfield because of the shortage of public telephones there.

A spokesperson said: "We are trying to give the public a service. In spite of our efforts to produce something more vandal-proof, this is what happened."

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He added: "The Post Office is already having to spend large amounts of money each year in repairing damaged kiosks and this particular one will be incurring damage costs before it has earned a penny.

"It seems a small section of the community is determined to spoil the service."

The new-style box was the second public telephone box for Berinsfield. It was erected at Perimeter Road, between Ock Drive and Colne Drive.

The new-style boxes cost around £124 each.