Earlier this year the walkway from Ward Royal to the King Edward Court shopping area was closed to the public. As a result the South Path just alongside
Ward Royal has increased considerably in foot traffic. In this short period of time there has been a huge increase in garbage and graffiti along the path.
There are obviously people using the path for drinking as there are always empty beer cans strewn amongst the bushes and under the trees. It is well tucked
away from prying eyes, many nooks and crannies and dark hidden areas can be found all along the South Path. That's actually part of what makes it
interesting and unique, but unless something changes I fear this may be the scene for more serious offenses in the future.
While there are numerous lights along the path, most are covered almost completely by tree branches making it VERY dark at night.
The worst of the graffiti is in an area where there are no windows facing out from Ward Royal. This is also one of the darkest areas along the path.
I would hope that the powers-that-be might see the importance of being proactive by trimming the branches away from the lights to brighten the path.
Installing at least another trash bin along the path could help reduce the amount of trash. Possibly installing at least one camera, whether done by the
Police Department or by Ward Royal, along the path would probably help deter drinking/graffiti. (The best place in my opinion would be the area that is
blocked by view from Ward Royal where the concentration of graffiti exists ) And last but not least, an extensive cleanup of the entire path including
removing graffiti needs to be done. It would be great if occasionally a Police Officer could walk through the path, especially at night.
There has also been a problem with people biking through the path (even though there are NO CYCLING signs posted at both ends). One individual recently was
injured due to a bicycler on the path speeding through! I tried to get a photo of a group of bicyclers on the path today but they were too fast for me.
Apparently the Royal Borough maintains the walkway itself and one side of it, the other side is privately owned by the people on Clarence Crescent, and they
yet another portion is part of Ward Royal. I am not sure who would be responsible for the path - but I would be happy to volunteer as part of a neighborhood
clean-up on a weekend if that sort of thing is done here. I usually don't complain unless I'm willing to be part of a solution - the same holds true
now. I have not been here long but I love Windsor and will happily get involved any way I can to help make it better, or just help keep it from going
downhill!
Here are just a few pictures I took recently:
The Sad State of South Path
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 movingtoEngland |
The Sad State of South Path |
Lead | |
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Posts: 79 (15-Oct-2009 10:52 PM) |
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movingtoEngland |
Grafitti getting worse everyday | ||
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Posts: 80 (16-Oct-2009 08:22 AM) |
Shown here is one of the worst areas of graffiti - more graffiti seems to be added weekly, sometimes daily. This is one of the darkest and most hidden
parts of the path. You can also count on finding empty beer cans in this area on a regular basis.
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the jiffle king |
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Posts: 154 (16-Oct-2009 08:37 AM) |
Have you phoned the council? they usually can do something about this. I would also expect that the Owners in Clarence Crescent do not know the graffiti is there as they would have little reason to walk up this path. The real issue has been that Ward Royal is now closed to walk through, something I did once a week with shopping. Not sure on the legality of them doing this, but I think this is the first issue to address, and the council should be able to sort the graffiti issue
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thamesweb |
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Posts: 2370 (16-Oct-2009 08:59 AM) |
Many thanks for drawing this to the forum's attention. It is a sad reflection on our society today that teenagers (in the main) seem to think that defacing
their surroundings is a clever thing to do. It is also sad that RBWx are unable to get on top of the problem - no doubt as a result of insufficient resources.
However, I have reported the matter here so I hope that action will be taken
promptly.
It would be nice if some prosecutions resulted one day. Anyone know of any prosecutions ever? In many ways it is self-defeating to popularise graffiti artists. One, whose name I refuse to name here, has an exhibition in Bristol and has received national, if not international recognition. It certainly seems that he has some talent, but defacing the walls of other people's property is not the way to go about promoting their skills - and anyway most graffiti has no artistic value even to fellow graffiti artists who seem perfectly happy to spray over existing graffiti. Local action groups would of course be a great help but, as I found out a few years ago, health and safety regulations preclude work by locals to clean up their own areas as they are untrained in the use of the chemicals used to remove graffiti. Good grief!!! There are also complications when it comes to cleaning up the exterior walls of private property, the legalities of which are a little complex, but in short the property owners are normally responsible for cleaning up their own walls. Yes, that is going to work well, isn't it! I can't believe that there are all that many individuals locally who do this sort of thing and a 'blitz' would help by the authorities to identify who is responsible and prevent them from doing more damage and creating more expense. It is, after all 'criminal damage' and there have been sentences ranging from Anti Social Behaviour Orders to 3 ½ years imprisonment for graffiti damage to trains and railway infrastructure. (Source: Home Office Graffiti Information. Once word got out, and those arrested prosecuted, I am confident that the problem would be significantly reduced. Perhaps the schools could be a starting point, with warnings issued about the planned 'blitz' which then has to be seen to be taking place. |
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sandra |
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Posts: 7 (27-Oct-2009 03:34 PM) |
While walking through South Path today I saw a RBWM rubbish collector walking down the path with his rubbish trolley. He did his duty by emptying the rubbish
bins on both ends of the path, but walked right past the beer cans, sandwich wrappers, and other litter, some of which he would have had to step around. I
guess I just don't understand!
I am very tempted to bring along my own trash bag and do it myself, but at the same time wondering why it should resort to that? (I wonder if the RBWM is hiring for those positions? ) |
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Pat Larkin |
'This England' | ||
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Posts: 1034 (27-Oct-2009 03:49 PM) |
Sandra, you will soon learn to understand our quaint and puzzling rules in this country....I'm not saying 'we' understand them, but to a point,
it's an 'English' thing I think.....the gentleman you saw collecting rubbish from the bins probably isn't 'allowed' to touch any
litter, bottles, beer cans, sandwich wrappers etc., that aren't inside the bins....it's an old law from the 1200's I think, but thamesweb will,
I'm sure, put both of us right on that.....perhaps it was written in 'Magna Carta' that 'each council department sticks to it's own job and
doesn't infringe on others' duties'....should you attempt to remove said litter, using your own trash bag, you could be committing an act of
something-or-other, so, be cautious.....November 5th is almost upon us, so think what happened to Mr. Fawkes and take care...
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sandra |
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Posts: 9 (27-Oct-2009 03:57 PM) |
So it's someone else's job to pick up the litter on the walkway?? That doesn't seem very cost effective! I know you can get fined if you are caught
throwing litter on the ground, but also if you pick it up?!
And I don't know what happened to Mr. Fawkes! |
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Pat Larkin |
'Guido or Guy Fawkes' | ||
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Posts: 1035 (27-Oct-2009 04:11 PM) |
Born 13th April, 1570 in York, Yorkshire, England.
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sandra |
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Posts: 23 ( 5-Nov-2009 09:37 PM) |
I was just reading about an art fair that is to take place in Windsor November 14th & 15th called the "Windsor Contemporary Art Fair" which
sounds interesting. However after further reading I noticed they are actually going to be giving GRAFFITI WORKSHOPS.
"Graffiti workshops by the energetic artists from the Soulful Gallery of Slough will give would-be 'taggers' the chance to create their very own signatures." What???? Can anyone be so naive to think people will learn to spraypaint their signature and go home to paint it on paper and canvas? No - they will be committing crimes by defacing other people's property. This is frustrating!! (Can we send the bill for cleaning up future tagging to the Soulful Gallery of Slough?) And for the record, nothing has changed on the South Path. There is more rubbish than ever, and new graffiti has been added since I took the pictures. |
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Pat Larkin |
Photos | ||
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Posts: 1065 ( 6-Nov-2009 09:31 AM) |
Sandra, have you sent any of your 'graffiti' photos to the council? It really might have an impact on them......'might' being the operative
word.......you could also hint that you've sent said photos to the Windsor Castle website......actually, if there is one, you could....! I think a Royal
visit is the only answer to South Path's problem, and, apart from Her Majesty asking to walk the length 'South Path', there isn't much chance
of the litter, rubbish and griffiti being collected and removed....it really is such a shame, because in the 'black and white days', (Hazel and Beryl
with verify this), the residents of 'under Ward Royal' would never have allowed this to happen..... they'd be sad and shocked to see the state of
the area they not only lived in but cherished and were very proud of too.
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Beryl Mann |
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Posts: 384 ( 6-Nov-2009 01:37 PM) |
Pat
I fully endorse that! Those were the days when everywhere looked so much tidier even the parts of the town which were crying out for attention to the somewhat shabby shops which were a by product of the wars and hard times suffered before and between. Thankfully people still had the respect and pride which was in more recent years allowed to fall apart when it was not curtailed before it got out of hand. It must surely be two or even three generations on that some of these people were simply unaware that their offspring were throwing down their sweet wrappers and empty drinks bottles - producing the habbit of a life time - which brought about the disgraceful situation along South Path - the tip of the iceberg, and sadly a reflection of many similar scenes throughout the country. |
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thamesweb |
'Streetcare' department notified again | ||
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Posts: 2470 ( 6-Nov-2009 01:41 PM) |
Following the 'Streetcare' department's response to this forum's pleas to sort out the abandoned bikes, for which our thanks, I have contacted
them again concerning the state of South Path. The original notification of the problem dates from mid-October but, unlike the bike matter, I have not had a
reply. I have therefore contacted a staff member on their team reporting the problem once more. I have no doubt that they will respond as soon as they get a
chance but, as graffiti is a major problem throughout the borough, I suspect we have to wait our turn.
It does of course not help to see courses run on the subject of graffiti ('Good Grief', indeed!!!) but perhaps the tutor will make the point that graffiti on someone else's property is considered criminal damage. (See links above re penalties, etc.) Another aspect of graffiti which is widely accepted but seldom acted upon is that if it is removed very promptly those responsible can lose interest in vandalising that particular area. Prosecutions ought to have a similar effect, but if there are no prosecutions... |
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thamesweb |
Superswift response from 'Streetcare' team | ||
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Posts: 2473 ( 6-Nov-2009 03:28 PM) |
I am delighted to report that I have received a very quick response from the Streetcare team. Barely 90 mins has passed since my email to them. They write:
Thank you for your email concerning South Path, this is cleansed every Tuesday and inspected on a regular basis. However as you are aware this is a very busy walk way used by lots of children and people visiting Windsor and therefore does unfortunately attract a lot of litter. There are bins situated at each end of the path but unfortunately some people choose not to use them. Well, full marks for a swift response but what concerns me is Sandra's post as follows: sandra wrote: This seems most odd as the street care crew that I have seen do try to get at most of the litter, even down to trying to pick-up a cigarette stub with one of those litter-picker tools. Dear me, he has gloves on! Bend down and pick it up... life is too short! (Not allowed of course - 'Elf and Safety' and all that probably!) Perhaps that is the problem, perhaps the litter picker tool can't get around beer cans. (Tread on it and flatten it, then it will!) I have responded to the Streetcare team and see if they would like to comment in view of the above. |
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sandra |
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Posts: 24 ( 6-Nov-2009 04:13 PM) |
Thanks Thamesweb. Actually the litter pickers DO pick up cans - I did it all morning on the Brocas a few weeks ago.
I've seen the same cans and litter in the same places for weeks now. I was told by someone else that one side of the South Path is actually private property so it's not cleaned by RBWM? I'm not 100% sure about that though. How about installing another rubbish bin along the path? It is a poor excuse to say graffiti will just reappear quickly anyway - if it is constantly and quickly removed the taggers do tend to lose interest. Where I used to live we had a problem with gang members tagging our garages with gang symbols, which is more a more serious issue than the graffiti on South Path. The best way to stop them was to be consistent about getting rid of the graffiti quickly. They do give up eventually! But on top of that it was the law you had 36 hours to remove graffiti on your property or the city would come out and do it for you, and send you a bill for their services... I'd be happy to volunteer to clean the path. Should I contact Streetcare myself? And what about the trees that need trimming around the lights on the path? I'm not willing to climb trees. |
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thamesweb |
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Posts: 2475 ( 6-Nov-2009 04:52 PM) |
The street lights should not be obscured and problem branches should be removed quickly. The early Spring would be a good time just before the bushes burst
into growth and the pruning cuts can heal quickly.
The published email address for 'Streetcare' is streetcare@rbwm.gov.uk or call Streetcare Customer Services on 01628 683804. It seems unlikely that the land beyond the wall is part of the land on the other side. Walls are normally boundaries of course. It is true that the walls are the responsibility of the landowner and RBWx could require them to clean their walls but seem reluctant to require compliance. This from the 'DirectGov' website 'the local authority does have a power to issue a 'defacement removal notice' to the property owner, which requires them to remove the graffiti or flyposting within 28 days. If they fail to do so, the local authority can do the work themselves and recover the costs. Your local council cannot remove graffiti or flyposting from private households and other private property without the owner's permission. However, many offer a free or subsidised service to assist the removal.' |
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Hazel Austin |
EXPLETIVE | ||
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Posts: 535 (25-Nov-2009 10:44 PM) |
How can I have missed this? Because I haven't yet caught up with posts done when I was awol, I suppose.
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