​Chefs at a Bath cookery school have expressed their anger at vandals who have damaged the model lion outside their premises.

The Bertinet Kitchen’s model is one of more than 30 sculptures already positioned on the streets throughout Bath as part of a public art project which was launched last week and will continue until October.

The Mane Course, which has been located outside the teaching kitchen in St Andrew’s Terrace, was there for less than a week before the attack took place on Wednesday night.

One resident whose property neighbours the kitchen, run by chef Richard Bertinet, saw a couple of youths vandalising the lion from her window and shouted down to the youngsters.

As a result of the attack the plinth is now cracked in two and an area of mosaic has been removed.

Mr Bertinet said staff were saddened by the mindless act of vandalism.

He said: “I’m and very cross and it is such a sad thing to have happened.

“It is such a beautiful thing and they have just damaged it.

“It is a piece of art that has been damaged and although we can repair it, it is never going to be the same.

“I just find it amazing that you can’t leave something on the street in Bath.”

Co-organiser of the Lions of Bath project, which will eventually see 100 life-size model lions on the streets throughout the city, Sue Yates-Price, said they were working to prevent more such incidents.

She said: “It seems that it is just a few silly people who are spoiling it for everybody.

“Hopefully it will slow down and this was just a novelty.

“We are talking to the sponsors and reassuring them that we are doing what we can to prevent this from happening.

“So many people have already taken pictures of the lions and put them on the internet and they are already warming people’s hearts.”