Graffiti Strategy - Update
Introduction
The partnerships new approach has an
overarching aim to eradicate graffiti in the Thanet District. In
order to make a meaningful attempt at breaking the cycle, there
needs to be a broader approach including preventative measures and
diversionary activities as well as strengthening our approach to
enforcement and removal.
Over the past 18 months, steps have been taken
by the Community Safety Unit to reduce graffiti. These steps
include:
- introduction of digital image recording
- encouragement to report graffiti
- implementation of a graffiti database
- joint operations between the council and Kent
Police in enforcing actions on prolific graffiti offenders.
Recent steps being looked into include
- a dedicated reporting line, for recording to be more
effective.
- removal services being brought in house to be more
efficient.
- working with the youth offending service to positively
encourage street art as part of youth inclusion to differentiate it
from graffiti tagging
- raising awareness of the penalties and punishments of graffiti
through a media campaign.
What has been done to date on the four strands of the
strategy.
Diversion
The first out of four planned diversionary 'Street Art' murals
has been completed and is on display in Harold Road,
Cliftonville.
The mural's will raise awareness of partnership priorities, the
first being domestic abuse.
The Thanet Community Safety
Partnership worked with young people, survivors of domestic abuse, reformed graffiti artists and a
local art studio to produce the mural at the Harold Road
public toilets, which sends out a positive message that domestic
abuse will not be tolerated.
"There is NO excuse, for Domestic
Abuse!"
Street Art Mural's differ from graffiti, as the art has meaning
and contains a picture, rather than a tag. By providing legal
diversionary activities for those with a creative itnterest,
criminal damage is often less prevalent.
Removal
TCSP have been working with youth organisations, local schools
and the probation service to effectively remove or paint over
graffiti.
As well at Thanet District Council now having an
efficient in-house team which will carry out removal across
the Isle, the probation service - through 'Community Payback' has
assisted the efficient cleaning up of graffiti in Thanet.
662 sites have been cleared of graffiti, int he last year with
90% of graffiti being removed within 10 working days of being
reported, and 95% within 4.
Prevention
A Community Safety Officer has been delivering
a sucessful marketting campaign to local schools and youth groups
in early 2009. Furthering school engagement work carried out
by the Safer Schools Partnership Co-ordinator, who also deliver's
the ''Is it really worth it?'' Kent Police package, which addresses
the penalties for both graffiti and other criminal damage.
Poster's and leaflets raising awareness around graffiti, and the
effects of having a criminal record have been widely circulated
across the Isle. TCSP have also been working with local young
people, encouraging them to be 'active citizens' and safeguard
their local environment as part of school coursework, young
people have been engaging with their peers, further
getting the message across.
Anti graffiti paint is also being trialed in locations across
the Isle. The paint - which enables any subsequent graffiti to be
removed with hot soapy water, will also safeguard areas across the
Isle and reduce the amount being spent on removal.
Enforcement
Case builds continue on prolific graffiti
taggers, following the sucessful joint council and police operation
'Op Tag' which ran in 2008 and saw prosecutions on 5 persistent
offenders.
TCSP continues to support ASBO's on repeat offenders, and all
reported graffiti is photographed and included in the graffiti
database. Work with schools also enables identification of young
people who are causing criminal damage.
In January 2008, a successful operation to arrest and prosecute
five prolific taggers. Called Operation Tag, it sent a clear
message that agencies were working effectively in partnership to
not tolerate repeat offenders.
An awareness campaign has been rolled
out to make this message clear to the public, as well as the
use of covert camera's to catch offenders in hot spot areas.
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