Swindon residents could have graffiti cleaned from their homes for free, thanks to a new initiative.
Until now residents and businesses have had to pay the council to use its high-pressure water jets to remove any graffiti daubed on their property.
But now the council is introducing a new graffiti-busting van to try to clean up the town by offering a free service.
Coun Justin Tomlinson (Con, Abbey Meads), the council's lead member for Swindon Services, said he hoped the scheme would reduce the amount of graffiti in the town.
"It is the broken window syndrome," he said. "If you leave it, it spreads and you get more of it."
"This will allow the free removal of graffiti from private property for the first time."
Swindon Council has a graffiti hotline and staff who go out clearing up the vandalism when it is reported by members of the public.
But until now, unless the graffiti is racist or homophobic, the council has charged residents and businesses to clean their property.
"Sometimes residents pay and the graffiti gets cleaned but not everyone can afford to and so sometimes it gets left," said Coun Tomlinson.
"There will no longer be a barrier for the community to be free of graffiti."
The graffiti will have to be in the public view to be cleaned for free and the council will prioritise high visibility sites.
Specialists will then go out to clean-up the area using a high pressure hot water jets with environmentally-friendly gels.
Coun Tomlinson came up with the idea after being contacted by a resident in Ash Brake, who wrote to him about the graffiti problem in her area.
Alexandra Saxton felt by leaving the graffiti the council was endorsing it. She said she was pleased with the development but wanted to see the council do more.
"It is a start," she said. "But to be honest I think the council should be going out and cleaning up graffiti off its own bat.
"I think it is very depressing when you walk around Swindon and see all the vandalism."
The £40,000 needed to pay for the extra van and team is coming from savings in the IT budget.
Coun Tomlinson said: "We promised that by cutting out waste we would improve front line services. We have found efficiency savings within IT."
The move was approved by the council's cabinet this week.
The graffiti hotline is 01793 463463.
Evening Advertiser 17/12/04