GRAFFITI is appearing around Dunmow and all over surrounding housing estates and people in the town want something done about it. Signs, bus shelters and fences around the town have been vandalised in this way and fears are growing that the problem is get

GRAFFITI is appearing around Dunmow and all over surrounding housing estates and people in the town want something done about it.

Signs, bus shelters and fences around the town have been vandalised in this way and fears are growing that the problem is getting worse.

Helena Bailey, of Godfrey Way, Dunmow, who keeps seeing graffiti appear in the town spoke to The Broadcast in the hope something would be done. The mother said: "We come from Romford where everything is 'tagged', we moved to Dunmow to get away from all that. It is a beautiful town and we don't want it ruined.

"The graffiti problem in Romford started in the same way. Children copy each other and when they see that nothing has been done about it they assume they can get away with it."

People in Dunmow want to see it stamped out before it gets out of hand and Mrs Bailey even suggested a hotline number, that people could ring when they spot graffiti, so the council could dispatch a team to clear it up.

But Owen Wilson, Dunmow town clerk, told The Broadcast it just didn't have the resources for such a scheme.

He said "The problem with a hotline is you need to have somebody on the other end of the phone, we don't have the capacity to do anything like that in this town."

He said if the town used all the council funds to battle graffiti it wouldn't have any cash left for anything else, such as parks and climbing frames.

Mr Wilson added: "If it's Town Council property we try to remove it, we do all we can to improve the town."

He advised anyone concerned about graffiti to get in touch with Essex County Council.

The issue first drew the public attention when graffiti reading 'CM6' was found on the Post Office sign positioned to the right of the building entrance, it is thought that the CM6 stands for a gang of youths rather then an individual.

Several children have been seen regularly congregating at night around the front of the Post Office inside the bus shelter and it is believed they may be responsible or have seen the culprits.

Mrs Bailey said: "I have also seen very offensive writing on some of the road signs near my house, one said the C word on Rosemary Lane. I have to walk my children past that on the way to town. It is terrible and an eyesore."

Mrs Bailey said she had contacted Dunmow Town Council last week on the matter but has had no response.

"My husband said if he was given a kit he would do it himself. If we keep cleaning it up we will discourage whoever it is doing it," she said.

The Post Office staff will be removing the graffiti on the premises. A Royal Mail spokesman said: "Our policy is to remove graffiti as soon as it's been reported, the Dunmow Post Office has been notified and it will be removed.