When I became Croydon’s Executive Mayor, I pledged to get our graffiti removal service – stopped as part of budget cuts in 2020 – back up and running as a priority.
Listening to residents, I know that graffiti has a major impact on their quality of life – it makes our borough look unloved and creates an environment where anything goes. This has to stop.
I had teams out tackling the graffiti backlog within days of taking office while also tasking officers with developing a fresh approach – set out in a report this week.
From ‘blitz’ clean ups in particular areas, to preventative measures, we will send a strong message that Croydon won’t tolerate this behaviour anymore.
I’m looking forward to seeing our removal crews in action but most importantly, to seeing how this restores local pride and helps our communities to thrive.
We had more good news for Croydon this week with a £3.2m Government funding award to extend a flagship programme that has helped hundreds of residents in to work.
Croydon co-ordinates the programme across four boroughs and under our leadership, the programme has been one of the highest performing of its kind in the UK, helping residents who have the most difficulty accessing job opportunities.
The funding is a massive vote of confidence from the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP), good news for some of our most vulnerable residents, and a boost for our local economy.
Finally, I want to congratulate a member of council staff whose dedication has been recognised with a national accolade again this year. Once again, Tara Boswell has received the RSPCA’s stray dog PawPrint gold award for her important work in our community. Tara finds rescue spaces, foster and forever homes for the stray dogs Croydon collects, and has developed a network of contacts including kennels and a vet, which means stray and sick animals receive the best possible care. Well done Tara!
Have a great weekend
Jason Perry
Executive Mayor of Croydon
