GRAFFITI is to be wiped out in Colchester in a joint operation by police and council officers.

Education and enforcement are the two main thrusts of the assault on graffiti being launched by the town centre policing team and Colchester Council.

Police are to target hotspots in the town centre with covert CCTV cameras to catch vandals in the act, and they will visit schools to talk to teenagers about the damage and impact of graffiti.

Sergeant Dave Gillies said that graffiti "creates a negative impression of an area" and police will "be doing everything we can to keep graffiti out of Colchester."

"What many of the offenders do not realise is that the graffiti affects people's lives and that it damages the community," he said.

"We are taking a zero-tolerance approach to graffiti and there will be tougher punishment on those who offend."

Colchester Council is to target its CCTV system on graffitied areas, and is trialling a new cleaning gel to remove graffiti from a range of surfaces.

Street care and recycling manager Dave McManus said graffiti was "a real blight on the environmental quality of our town" and costs the council thousands of pounds annually.

"This initiative shows that partnership working can provide the resources needed to stamp out this problem," he said.

"We are determined to go to whatever lengths are necessary to improve the situation, including taking offenders to court."

Trading standards officers from Essex County Council are also planning test purchase operations to ensure spray paint is not being sold to under-16s.

l Call police on 0300 333 4444 to report any incidents of graffiti.