Paint strippers

Since its inception, the association has been well supported by city councils from Belfast to Brighton and organisations such as London Underground. It has grown in strength and many leading manufacturers and contractors have joined the ranks. It is continually seeking to increase its membership and hopes to attract more members from all sectors, whether local government or the transport industry.

The AGA is not a trade association or, indeed, a political pressure group. Its aim is to bring together all sectors that are concerned with graffiti management with the eventual outcome of eradicating graffiti vandalism. It particularly wishes to promote best practice, whether it is in the application of anti-graffiti coatings, in graffiti removal techniques or in other aspects that lead to better management.

Building owners do well to apply antigraffiti coatings which are generally of two types, ‘sacrificial’ and ‘permanent’. Sacrificial coatings are generally based upon cellulose and micro-crystalline waxes and are re-applied to substrates following graffiti attack and subsequent cleaning. It follows, therefore, that they should be easy to remove and to re apply. On the other hand, permanent coatings are expected to survive repeated graffiti attacks and, naturally, they should have good durability in service being able to survive weathering and exposure to ultra-violet light. The actual life of a coating is also going to depend upon how often it is attacked by graffiti and how often and by what method it is cleaned. In some cases, coatings have been found to lose efficacy after a relatively short time due to the combined effect of the environment, repeated graffiti attacks and cleaning solvents. It is important, therefore, to select coatings and determine what is most effective for a specific application. The AGA recognises the need to raise the skills of industry and, hence, it is concerned with such issues as contractor training, site practices and health and safety aspects in the use of graffiti removal chemicals. As well as technical areas, it is also concerned with a variety of other issues such as the advantages and disadvantages of legal graffiti walls and community issues generally.

Recently, it held its fifth National Conference in Nottingham where it received the strong support of the Lord Mayor of the City. This was a very successful event with over a 120 delegates representing all sectors, local government, the transport industry, manufacturers and contractors. The Conference was well supported by leading manufacturers with a dozen trade stands fully occupied. The event gives the industry the opportunity to show its technical expertise and for new products to be launched into the marketplace. A diverse range of speakers included ENCAMS, Cambridge City Council and South West Trains.

A very interesting presentation was given by members of the Bristol Police Force. In Bristol the police have recognised graffiti vandalism as an operational priority alongside other volume crimes and as a result, with an appropriate commitment of time and resources, a dedicated unit has been established to deal with this form of vandalism. As a pilot project, the Graffiti Unit achieved early success with four persons apprehended, admitting 120 offences and each receiving a court conviction. The unit was then made a permanent feature of Bristol crime fighting and in early 2007 Bristol’s most prolific tagger was apprehended. He admitted to 365 counts of criminal damage and was later convicted. There has followed further success with convictions to 20 persons from various graffiti gangs and a further nine on police bail. The result has been a significant decrease in the amount of graffiti damage in the city.

An important aspect of police success in Bristol is that they have worked with other agencies such as the city council. This partnership approach is an aspect that needs to be fostered if success is to be achieved.

Another city which has had success against graffiti vandalism is Sheffield. In the 1990s the city suffered greatly from this vandalism but then Sheffield City Council took a proactive approach and, subsequently, the amount of graffiti vandalism has greatly declined. Not only does the city council rapidly remove graffiti from its own property but it also operates the ‘Sheffield Graffiti Charter’, a voluntary initiative which encourages the owners of private commercial buildings to sign a pledge to keep their properties graffiti free. Among other benefits, the property owners receive removal at a reduced cost and can obtain certain anti-graffiti coatings at a lower price.

The AGA wishes to encourage towns and cities throughout the UK in developing anti-graffiti policies and strategies, to manage and, eventually, to eliminate graffiti. This may be achievable if all who have an interest in graffiti removal, local government, industry, the police and communities themselves, can work together in partnership to overcome this urban blight. The AGA intends to be instrumental in this process by developing ‘best practice’ and in promoting a coherent and well thought out approach to graffiti management and removal.