"Mindless" thugs vandalised a mosaic in the centre of a park.

The dragon mosaic, in New Southgate Millennium Green, on Station Road, was unveiled in 2013 after being designed the previous year by local artist Harry Blackman and assembled by volunteers.

This week, the centrepiece, made entirely of marble, was ripped from the mosaic and discovered in a nearby hedge.

Park trustee Andrew Irvine, told the Enfield Independent he was “gutted” to see the mosaic damaged and called for anyone who might have seen anything to come forward.

He said: “When it was first discovered we were all gutted, especially Harry, who had spent hours coming up with the idea, this means so much to him and all of us.

“The marble can be replaced without too much cost but the danger is this happening again and we need to try and figure out a way to safeguard this beautiful part of our park.”

The park was opened in 2000 and has recently undergone refurbishments as the trust tries to appeal to the local community on the borders of Enfield and Barnet.

Mr Irvine added: “This was done by mindless thugs for no apparent reason. We are doing a lot in the park to appeal to everyone living here and seeing things like this is very disappointing.