Council & Business
1 March, 2018
Graffiti prevention program on display
Murals which have been completed as part of the program are now on display at the Central Goldfields Art Gallery.
With graffiti costing the Central Goldfields Shire Council over $60,000 per year in clean-up costs, the shire, along with Victoria Police, the Central Goldfields Art Gallery and Nacho Station have teamed up with local schools in a bid to prevent the vandalism.
Kicking off last year, the Sorry About Your Wall program will engage with up to 220 local students, aged 10 to 18 years, from local schools.
The program is aimed at preventing graffiti across the shire by informing young people about the laws pertaining to the vandalism and teaching students the difference between graffiti and street art.
Dunolly and Timor primary school students attended their first session of the program this week, with Central Goldfields Shire Youth Advisory Council coordinator Audrey Bartlett saying the students thoroughly engaged with the session.
“There are quite heavy financial fines and charges which can stay with a young person if they are found guilty of graffiti, we’re educating these students about those consequences,” she said.
“We’ve held weekly sessions with schools from across the shire and we teach the students about the impact graffiti has on the shire and ask them to think about what that money could be spent on."
For more on this story see Page 7 of The Advertiser, Friday, March 2.