A devastated Bexleyheath couple are appealing to anyone with information after a thief stole close to £20,000 worth of tools along with their children's Christmas presents.

Alison Tarling, of Warren Road, told News Shopper her husband's van was broken into in the early hours of December 9, with the thief stuffing thousands of pounds of specialist equipment and her kids' Christmas toys into a suitcase before fleeing.

She said: "Our drive is covered by seven CCTV cameras and we have PIR lighting that is activated by movement, however, this didn't deter him.

"We have CCTV footage showing the burglar returning to the van four times between 1am and 3am on Sunday morning and emptying out the entire contents into a suitcase."

She explained the presents had been left in the van as her children had been at home all day and the couple didn't want them peeking.

As the weather got worse, they decided to leave the gifts where they were and planned to bring them inside the following morning.

Along with the equipment, a large set of distinctive keys were taken, which Mrs Tarling explained are used for certain functions as part of his job.

As her husband is a railway signal engineer, Mrs Tarling said the stolen tools are not standard ones and the thief "will struggle to get rid of them and might end up dumping them" as nobody will understand how they work.

"Our little girls are six and two years old and this burglary has ruined their Christmas. My husband is going to struggle to replace his tools as they are valued at roughly £20,000 but will be utterly useless to most people as they are such specialist items," she explained.

A spokesman for the Met Police said no arrests have been made in connection with the theft but are continuing their enquiries.

Mrs Tarling has asked that if anyone comes across any unusual looking devices or tools in the area to get in touch with police.