Illegal advertising
Illegal advertising is the placing of unauthorised posters, flyers, stickers and advertising boards in public spaces.
It is illegal to post anything on guardrails. We can also remove banners on highways and street furniture without notice.
Estate agents can only advertise one board on a property but must take it down within 14 days after sale or tenancy.
For direction on how to advertise responsibly, refer to the Communities and Local Government’s guidance on outdoor advertisements and signs (PDF).
You can report illegal advertising to us and we will investigate it within 10 working days. It would be helpful to provide as much detail as you can, such as:
- advert description and content
- estate agent
- if you think the advert is offensive
- if you are willing to make a statement
- length of time the advert has been up
- location
If convicted of illegal advertising, the person responsible can receive a fixed penalty notice of £100 or a fine of up to £2,500 per advert.
Graffiti
We remove graffiti from a number of locations:
- business properties (at a cost and only after a notice has been given)
- council housing
- listed bridges other structures
- parks and open spaces
- public roads (except A10 and A406)
We will remove graffiti within 7 to 10 days of it being reported and within 24 hours if the graffiti is racist or offensive. It would be helpful to provide as much detail as you can in the report, such as:
- graffiti description and content
- height
- if you think the graffiti is racist or offensive
- if you are willing to make a statement
- location
We cannot remove graffiti that is more than 2 metres off the ground. If this is the case, you should contact the owner of the building or contractors. If the graffiti is on housing association property, please contact their office.