MOTORISTS were this week warned that speed checks will still be held outside a Tavistock school ? despite the ?irresponsible? theft of speed camera signs last week. The signs on the A386 outside Kelly College were only erected three weeks ago, but were removed some time between Sunday June 5 and the afternoon of June 6. Natalie Hatswell, of Devon and Cornwall Safety Camera Partnership, branded the theft as ?totally irresponsible?. She said: ?They just haven?t thought of the implications of what they were doing. These signs are there for the safety of pupils at the school and residents in the area and why they should want to take them is beyond me. ?We?ve had HGVs going through that area at 50 to 60mph and they just don?t have the capacity to stop in time if there?s a group of kids crossing the road.? Ms Hatswell said the signs were put up at the request of Kelly College, which was concerned for the safety of students crossing the A386 to get to the sports fields on the far side of the road. ?They are desperate to get some speed enforcement out there ? vehicles are thundering through at high speeds,? said Ms Hatswell. She said theft of police property was a crime which would be dealt with seriously by the authorities. Without warning signs, police were not able to use speed cameras ? but the theft did not mean the speed checks would stop. ?They will just put temporary signs out when they are enforcing, until the permanent ones are put up again,? she said. Mark Steed, headmaster of Kelly College, said the college had been very concerned for some time about the safety of its students. Mr Steed said: ?We have a major A-road going through the school site and we?ve tried to work with highways to improve the safety of the crossing. ?It?s now a 30mph speed limit, which we welcome, but the fact is, people still drive too quickly.? Mr Steed said he had accompanied police on the first day the speed trap was enforced ? and the results were ?extraordinary?. ?Even with the signs up and a very obvious parked police car, people were still driving over 40mph ? I think 60mph was the fastest they caught.? Mr Steed said the college would like to see double white lines on the road outside the school, to stop overtaking. ?Our pupils cross at the point of maximum visibility ? I don?t want there to be an accident before someone takes action,? he said. Anyone who has any information about the theft of the speed camera signs, valued at £50, should call police on 08452 777444, quoting log JT/05/717.