A HEARTLESS thief is preventing a little girl from learning after stealing a vital listening device from her school.

This week police joined her mum and headteacher at Harvington CofE First School in a plea for Toni Ward's special hearing aid to be returned.

Without it the eight-year-old is unable to take a full part in her classes.

Toni is reliant on the radio aid, worth £1,000. It is a hearing system, part of which hangs around the teacher's neck and transmits her voice to Toni's hearing aid. This system, fitted with a special radio transmitter, can pick up Toni's voice wherever she is in the school.

The hearing device was bought after her parents and classmates, joined forces to raise the cash.

Katrina Hopkins, Toni's mum, said: "The hearing device is basically like a mike that the teacher wears which allows two-way communication no matter where Toni is in the classroom.

"The radio aid system isn't any use to anyone else who doesn't have a hearing problem - it's not like a normal sound system, it provides surround sound for the teacher to hear what Toni is saying, only."

Mrs Hopkins said the equipment would be quite hard to replace as it is so expensive and the theft has left her daughter shaken and upset

She added: "It's really no good to anyone as it's specially designed for someone with hearing difficulties."

Toni told West Mercia police: "I can still hear but it's quite hard. I'm not picking up everything."

Headteacher Marcia Palmer said: "We're all really sad here, teachers, children and parents are upset by the break in. It's really upsetting when we've worked hard to buy things for our school and someone has just come in and taken it."

Pupils at the school spent last week studying being a victim and expressing their thoughts and feelings about the incident.

West Mercia police spokesman Richard Bull said: "Toni's equipment is of little or no use to anyone else.

"It may have been taken as being potentially valuable but the only person to whom it has value, really is Toni."

"It would probably be too much to ask for the thieves to hand it back - but some believe if you don't ask you don't get.

"On Toni's behalf and with her education in mind we ask someone out there to reconsider their actions and find a way of returning the equipment or at least letting us know where it can be found."

If anyone has any information related to the theft they should call the police on 08457 444 888.