Hounslow Council steps up street patrols in fight against graffiti (From Hounslow And Brentford Times)

Hounslow Council steps up street patrols in fight against graffiti

4:10pm Monday 30th March 2009

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Hounslow is stepping up the fight against graffiti.

From next month, there will be twice as many graffiti squads patrolling streets in a bid to cut the problem in half, the council has said.

Bosses are pledging to wage war on the unsightly scrawls - and are calling on residents to help them wipe it out by reporting graffiti whenever they spot it.

According to Government indicators, up to 17 per cent of streets in Hounslow are affected by graffiti.

Council cleaning squads will aim to remove the equivalent of 13 football pitches worth of graffiti in the next year alone.

As he prepares to take to the streets to help a council cleaning crew on Tuesday, council leader, Peter Thompson, said: “We’ve invested an extra £280,000 to help us wipe out graffiti across the borough, but we can’t do it by ourselves. We need people to let us know when it appears so we can remove it quickly.

“People feel less safe in streets which are blighted by problems like graffiti. "There is a clear link between antisocial behaviour like graffiti and fear of more serious crime. So, tackling this problem will really make Hounslow a better place to live.

"We want people to be proud of where they live, and not just accept graffiti as something they have to put up with.

“Everyone has the power to improve their area. If you’re sick of graffiti then please pick up the phone and let us know. "If you report it, we’ll remove it.”

In 2006 there was just one council graffiti squad operating in the borough. From next month, this will increase to four. This latest crackdown comes as part of the council’s campaign to “build pride borough wide”.

A recent report by Keep Britain Tidy highlighted the importance of the council’s campaign to wipe out graffiti. The report found people feel unsafe in areas which suffer from graffiti.

The study also highlighted a possible “climate of resignation” where residents were less likely to report problems like graffiti because they had come to accept them as the norm.

Anyone who wants to report graffiti can contact the council’s call centre on 020 8583 5555.

You can also report graffiti online by visiting hounslow.gov.uk/graffiti or emailing streetcare@hounslow.gov.uk. The maximum sentence for graffiti which causes more than £5,000 in criminal damage is 10 years.

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