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Graffiti project boost for Birstall
Posted on 02/09/2009
Colourful murals have been created in Birstall after 30 young people worked with professional graffiti artists to mask the work of vandals.
Young dedicated volunteers grafted in the rain to revamp the outside of the football pavilion in Meadow Lane and the Youth Centre at Longslade Community College.
Both venues had previously been graffitied by vandals who had scrawled ‘tags’ and obscenities on the side of the buildings.
Youngsters worked with Youth Workers and a company called Kolor Blind Designz to come up with their own artistic creations and learn spray painting techniques.
The scheme was co-ordinated by Leicestershire County Council’s Youth Service and was funded thanks to £2,500 from Charnwood Community Safety Partnership.
Manager of the Birstall United Juniors FC, whose football pavilion is now totally covered by a colourful scene which includes caricatures of the youngsters who designed it, Jim Lennon said: “It looks excellent.
“People have been telling us it has made a real difference.
“Previously we had kept painting over the vandalism but it kept happening. Now it looks great.
“I think youths often get a bad press, but the young people who did this really need to be given credit. They worked really hard.”
Ivan Ould, Leicestershire County Council Cabinet Member for Children and Young People’s Services, said: “The young people worked for three days to complete this project and have shown they are determined to do their bit to improve their community.
“They should be very proud of what they have achieved.”
Chairman of the Charnwood Community Safety Partnership, Councillor David Snartt, said: “I am pleased the Partnership was able to fund this exciting project, which has been a good example of agencies working together to make a difference for the local community. This is one of several initiatives that the Partnership has been involved with since concerns were raised by local residents within Birstall about unacceptable levels of graffiti and low-level criminal damage.
"Projects of this type are designed to educate young people and encourage them to adopt a more acceptable means of expression, ensuring the best possible outcomes for all concerned. Those involved worked really hard and created some eye-catching murals.”
The young people who took part in the project were either already engaged with the County council’s Youth Service provision in the area , or recruited by youth workers in detached sessions on the streets of Birstall in the lead up to the project.
It is hoped similar projects will be carried out in the area in the future.
To find out more about the County Council’s Youth Service visit: http://www.leics.gov.uk/youthservice