A STOURBRIDGE shopkeeper has hit out after his store became the latest target in a spate of burglaries in the Lower High Street area of the town.

Thieves made off with £50 in cash from the till and some charity collection boxes when they broke into Sowerby's Shoes.

But proprietor Clive Sowerby was more upset about the amount of damage caused to his premises.

He said: "They took out an entire door frame. They found an old fridge which had been disbanded nearby and used it as a battering ram to get through the door.

"The building is over 200-years-old and some of the frames are irreplaceable. They must have caused well over £1,000 worth of damage - all for £50 and some charity boxes.

"This isn't the first break-in we've had in Lower High Street recently as a number of other shops have been broken into.

"What is worrying is the fact nobody seems to have been brought to account.

"The police have promised more regular patrols, but I'm becoming increasingly concerned about safety in the town."

Other properties, including David's Deli, the Cats Protection charity shop and The Jobcentre, have also suffered damage to their premises.

Sgt Andy Holder, of Stourbridge Police, said: "Obviously we're aware there have been a few burglaries at businesses reported.

"We're sending out a strong crime prevention message to shopkeepers about not leaving large amounts of cash or charity boxes on the premises."

Sgt Holder added that investigations were continuing and officers were reviewing CCTV footage from town centre cameras.