On Easter Saturday, a day synonymous with family and faith, her Doonba St rental home erupted in flames, the force of the fire incinerating virtually everything in its path.

This morning, the South Tamworth mum of four and her partner Raymond Berry will return from a family holiday in Sydney to sift through the ashes of their life’s work.

The catalogue of damage is almost too much to bear – a brand new lounge, televisions, children’s favourite toys and, most agonisingly, irreplaceable photos.

The couple has worked stoically to give their four children a life better than they both had.

Mr Berry, a popular teacher’s aide at Hillvue Public, and Ms Cutmore, a cleaner, are respected in the local community, and have been long-term volunteers at the Midnight Basketball competition for at-risk youth.

In a bleak irony, Ms Cutmore believes it is likely youths are behind the arson attack on her home.

Mindless arson attacks are nothing new in Ms Cutmore’s part of town.

During a horror period late last year, homes in South Tamworth were targeted on an almost daily basis.

That bored teens could destroy a lifetime of possessions just for a fleeting thrill is an insult to every decent-minded person and an affront to what we hold dear as a community.

But we must resist the temptation for retribution or an overly punitive approach to punishing offenders.

While the “lock them all up” or “give them a flogging” logic resonates to many, it doesn’t drill down to the core of the issue.

These crimes are, in large part, a function of resentment and marginalisation.

Longer sentences for young offenders will simply deepen that sense of resentment and marginalisation.

The real solution to reducing crime in our troubled suburbs is far more complex, long-term and systemic.

As for Ms Cutmore and her family, the solution that matters most to them now is short-term – where will we live, how do we replace our possessions?

And while it would be understandable for them to focus on the unconscionable actions of a few, they will soon learn how much more powerful the actions of the many are.