Vandals ruin Wolverhampton street signs with white paint

A number of street names on the housing estate centred around Springhill Road in Wednesfield have been targeted by vandals in recent weeks, which has now forced the city council to take steps to replace them rather than try and clean them up.

The damage, which is spread over several streets and cul-de-sacs, has now been reported to Highways bosses by local councillor Phil Bateman, resulting in an officer coming out to inspect the extent of the vandalism.

The damage costs the council in the region of £80 for every new sign needed.

Councillor Bateman said: “It really is a very depressing state of affairs when this sort of mindless behaviour is going on.

“I always find it very sad when a neighbourhood attracts all the wrong sort of attention for all the wrong reasons.

“As well as being an unsightly mess on what is a nice respectable estate, the road signs that have been vandalised are causing real difficulties for delivery men, taxi drivers and anyone else who is not familiar with the street scene in that area.”

A spokesman for the city council’s Highways Department said: “Regarding the issue with the street nameplates on the Springhill Road estate, the officer responsible has visited the area and said the department intends to replace the signs rather than repaint them.

“We batch order street nameplates to get the best price – which costs the council in the region of £70-£80 per sign – so the vandalised locations have now been placed on the next order.”

Councillor Bateman added: “I do hope the local residents on the estate will find this action acceptable.

“It goes without saying that if anyone does know the names of whoever was responsible for this criminal damage, then could they please tell the police?”

By Joe Sweeney

Local Democracy Reporter