HJS’s Graftfiti Gang Clean up Hereford

Graffiti is a growing problem in Hereford and it was highlighted in a campaign in The Hereford Times ‘Don’t Rubbish Our City’, which published the public’s dismay at unsightly markings around the city.

The Director of Environment for Hereford Council, Graham Dunhill, was keen for Herefordshire Jarvis Services (HJS) to start the project with the support of residents and the newspaper, and a hotline has been set up by the Council for the public to report graffiti sightings. While the project has kicked off in Hereford, the success of the work and the positive response from the public means the scheme is now being rolled out across the county.

Malcolm Cox, Contracts Manager for HJS says “Although HJS look after a wide range of jobs for the council, the removal of graffiti wasn’t highlighted in our original contract. The problem of graffiti has become more visible and all parties have been looking to find a solution. We are pleased to get stuck into the job and make Hereford an even more attractive place to live and work for residents and visitors”

In addition to internal funding, the team has received financial support through The Community Safety Partnership, which has secured £26,000 from the Home Office towards police enforcement, youth engagement and sustaining the graffiti removal and prevention campaign.

A full-time dedicated HJS team is tackling graffiti removal. “When we were given the go-ahead for this work we already had a list of several areas that were due for a clean-up, but the hotline has been steadily giving us more and more information about other problem areas. It is great to get the residents involved and be able to show them results,” Malcolm Cox adds.

As well as finding the most effective tools for the job, the HJS team is equally aware of the environment, and chooses methods not only to preserve the original surface, but also avoiding any potential run-off of chemicals into water ways or wildlife habitats.

The operatives wear protective clothing, goggles and gloves, but they are not completely wrapped in cotton wool – never afraid of a bit of elbow grease, one of the most effective removal methods is a good old scrub with some wire wool.

A twin axle, high-pressure jet wash is used for large areas of graffiti and while metal surfaces such as signs are relatively easily cleaned in minutes with chemical wipes, bricks are notoriously difficult and can take days to restore.

As a preventative measure the Community Safety Partnership has proposed various initiatives, such as a designated graffiti wall/underpass for graffiti enthusiasts and working with youngsters in the area to provide alternative pastimes and facilities.

HJS has considered the long-term effects of dealing with this issue and Malcolm Cox is just as concerned with maintaining results as he is with the valuable, but potentially short lived, ‘quick fix’ clean-up.

“Prevention of graffiti is obviously the best solution as it avoids costly and timely cleaning” Malcolm Cox adds. HJS is researching preventative methods and has found that protective coatings on highly targeted surfaces are actually less costly than the removal of graffiti (especially if it has to be cleaned repeatedly). HJS is hoping that with continued funding they will not only be able to effectively remove graffiti around the city, but in the future, prevent the problem.

Liz Griffin, Editor of The Hereford Times, said: "I know how concerned our readers are about the state of their city, from the many letters and photographs we received, so I was delighted to learn that the issue had been recognised by Herefordshire Council. It is great to see the graffiti-gang at work, cleaning up the defaced areas and I'm sure that this partnership between the Hereford Times, its readers and Jarvis can only benefit the wider community. This is - I hope - just the beginning of the campaign Let's Clean Up Hereford."

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