TEACHER Christopher Smith thought he was indulging his interest in collectables when he paid a couple of pounds for an old street sign from a Minehead scrapyard. But last week - at least four years after he bought 'Bank Street' - police visited his home in Washford and removed the sign, which was nailed to his garage door, claiming it was stolen property. "My partner and I were actually away at the time but the policeman told me on the phone that the sign had been identified by an officer from West Somerset Council as belonging to the authority," said Mr Smith, aged 59. "I was absolutely flabbergasted. I have been shown no evidence to prove that the sign was stolen and, without seeing a police log to the effect, dated when it was supposed to have gone missing, I want it back. "This is just a total waste of police and council money and resources." The council has also retrieved a disputed number of signs from Carhampton-based salvage and reclamation business Chris's Crackers. Owner Peter Marshall said a friend was looking after the business while he was away when an officer from the council called. "He took away three signs, which we had had for about the previous six months. "I sell them all the time for anything between £5 and £40. "My business is based on recycling and, as far as I am concerned, these signs were scrap. "We have a recycling contract with Wyvern Waste and with the amount of stuff we recycle - we handle hundreds of tons every year - I think we're actually doing West Somerset a favour." Both Mr Marshall and Mr Smith got their signs from scrap merchants E B Janes in Minehead. Anthony Calloway, spokesman for the company's Mart Road depot, said the signs came in consignments of scrap received from across the county. "We deal in all sorts of scrap and we have been getting these signs for years and years. "We've never been asked to break them up or destroy them to prevent them being recycled and sold on so I really can't understand why they have been taken by the council." Mr Smith, meanwhile, has already been given a replacement 'Bank Street', free of charge, by one of the few manufacturers of the signs in the country, G&G Signs in Leicester. In return, the technology teacher will be enlisting the help of some of his secondary school students - he currently works in Bournemouth - to come up with a possible laser alternative to the large production presses currently used in the company's manufacturing process. Mr Smith, who is the process of selling his home, Washford Farm, to relocate to Bournemouth, said he had contacted the company to discover whether the signs usually bore any identifying marks and had been told that in general they did not. He said he had also contacted a number of other local authorities, including Taunton Deane Borough Council, to discover what happened to redundant street signs. "So far, I have been told that they are just scrapped, which is what I would assume these signs were. "I just can't believe that a council would go to these lengths over something like this. "The way it has happened is simply unbelievable." Mr Smith said he had been contacted again by the police this week and told officers would be seeking a statement from the scrapyard where he bought the sign, after which a decision would be taken on whether he would face any further action. "This may seem trivial to some people but as a teacher I risk losing my career over something that I didn't do," he said. "I didn't steal that sign - I bought it, but quite a long time ago." In a statement, the council said an officer from the authority's built environment team wrote to Mr Smith last May asking to inspect work in relation to the conversion of a barn. The council said Mr Smith did not respond but the officer did visit an adjacent property the following month when the 'Bank Street' sign was spotted. "West Somerset Council street signs, especially ones of this age, style and font, were the predominant street signage used in the Williton area," said the council's statement. "While street signs do not carry a manufacturer's mark or crest, it was deemed unlikely to have come from outside this area." The council said Mr Smith was again written to in August and asked not only about arranging a date for the building work inspection but also about the street sign. "The officer said he had noticed the 'Bank Street' sign, which appeared to be council property. "He asked if he could collect this street sign on his next visit, unless Mr Smith could provide proof of purchase that he was the lawful owner of the sign. "Mr Smith failed to contact the built environment team with regards to the inspection or the sign. "As a consequence of [Mr Smith's] property being marketed for auction, the officer made an ad hoc visit to request the return of the sign before the property's sale. "Mr Smith was not at home." The council's statement went on to say that the police were contacted for advice on how best to retrieve the sign and officers had confirmed that they would meet with Mr Smith and retrieve the sign on the council's behalf. "They visited Mr Smith's property and recovered the street sign. "The Avon and Somerset constabulary are currently investigating the incident and West Somerset Council is co-operating fully with their investigation. "The matter is now in the hands of the proper agencies who will determine if there is a case to answer and whether it is in the public interest to pursue the matter." Mr Smith told the Free Press that he and his partner had spent much of last year in France, where they also have a home, and as far as he was aware he had not received any of the correspondence from the council. In relation to Chris's Crackers, the council said just one sign had been identified in an incident unrelated to Mr Smith when another officer had visited the salvage business. "An officer from the built environment team approached a member of staff who was happy to hand back the street sign to its rightful owner, West Somerset Council," the council said in its statement. "The return of the street sign was requested of, and readily acquiesced to, by staff. "It related to a single item, which was a street sign. "The officer left his card with the member of staff requesting that they contact him in future should they be offered any more street signs. "Naturally, the council is pleased to recover street signs and would appeal to people to simply return council property. "The cost of replacing street signs and council property otherwise falls to Council Taxpayers." Photo: Steve Guscott