Graffiti Removal
Graffiti is vandalism and is a very
expensive to remove, it can cost over one billion
pounds a year.
While some people think graffiti is an
art from for most the reality is that it makes an area look untidy,
is often offensive and adds to people's perceptions that an area is
unsafe.
If graffiti is not removed it can encourage more anti-social
behaviour and crime and make people feel frightened and
intimidated.
Graffiti is an act of criminal damage which is defined as
deliberately or recklessly destroying or damaging someone else’s
home, building, vehicle or other items..
Graffiti includes painting, writing, soiling, marking and
defacing property. Individuals found commiting an offence of
graffiti can be issued with a fixed penalty notice of £75 by an
authorised officer for minor offences. The Antisocial
Behaviour Act 2003 gives local authorities greater powers to tackle
this problem.
Protecting your property
There are a number of methods available to ensure that your
property isn't targeted by graffiti vandals:
- Avoid having outside wall painted white where possible - as
this will act as a canvas for graffiti
- Apply textured surfaces such as pebble dash to walls
- Create shrubberies against walls to restrict access to wall
surfaces
- Prevent access to high walls or roofs by coating drainpipes
with non drying paint
- Secure fencing around your property to limit easy access
- Think about installing security cameras
- Coat walls with suitable graffiti resistant coating
Removing your graffiti
As part of our efforts to clean the borough, Bedford Borough
Council will remove graffiti from the highway and publicly owned
land and aims to remove obscene and racist graffiti within 24
working hours of it being reported.
Businesses will also need to sign a disclaimer giving the
council permission to clean graffiti from their premises.
However, companies that fail to sign the disclaimer and fail to
keep their properties clean will be forced to remove their
graffiti. The council can issue graffiti removal notices to
organisations such as railway operators and those responsible for
street furniture. If graffiti is not removed within 28 days, we
have the authority to remove it and reclaim the costs.
In addition, the council’s ‘Graffiti Busters’ scheme provides a
service for graffiti removal from private property which is
visually obtrusive from a public highway. Residents requesting this
service will be required to sign a disclaimer form for the council
to be able to carry out the work, please read the disclaimer
carefully. You can post this form to:
Community Volunteering, Bedford Borough Council, FREEPOST
NAT536, Bedford, MK40 1BR.
To report graffiti, please contact the Call
Centre on 01234 718060, or via callcentre@bedford.gov.uk.
Or e-mail the completed form to EnvironmentalEnforcementTeam@bedford.gov.uk.
You can also help us to catch those committing
these offences by taking photos that document the graffiti, time
and place that it has taken place. This can be used as evidence in
the event that a person is arrested and charged.
Download the
disclaimer form