6 Dec 2018

Christchurch City Council’s Graffiti Programme is celebrating its 10th anniversary.

Under the Off the Wall programme, graffiti is reported and removed from Council property throughout the city thanks to the efforts of hundreds of volunteers.

About 150 individuals, 50 community groups, and several businesses voluntarily help keep the city graffiti-free.

Council Graffiti Team Leader Val Merryweather says that “the cost of removal would be huge without these wonderful volunteers”.

“Hours of work go into both reporting and removing graffiti,” she says.

“It is thanks to our volunteers that so much is achieved.

“This not only saves us a great deal of time and money, but contributes to our goal of reducing the impact of graffiti vandalism on residents and city visitors.”

The hard work of these tag spotters, removers and artists has been recognised at a recent Volunteer and Stakeholder Acknowledgment Function – coinciding with the programme’s anniversary – at the North New Brighton Community Centre.

Service Certificates – presented by City Councillor Glenn Livingstone – have acknowledged the achievements of volunteers ranging in age from eight to 89.

“Nearly 20 volunteers have been involved in the programme for 10 years, while almost 50 have been with us for between five and 10 years,” Ms Merryweather says.

She says the volunteer work is invaluable.

“Our volunteers and stakeholders are integral to our collaborative approach to graffiti eradication, underlining the importance of community engagement, education and enforcement,” Ms Merryweather says.

Over the past 10 years, hundreds of people have helped to identify and remove damage, benefiting the whole community.