A PIONEERING online venture to tackle graffiti in York has won royal approval.

Members of Taking Action Against Graffiti (TAAGY) in York are to receive an award at Buckingham Palace for their dedication in keeping the city clean of unsightly markings.

The Princess Royal will present the award to the TAGGY team, on behalf of The Butler Trust, of which she has been patron since its launch in 1985.

The independent charity recognises “exceptionally dedicated and often creative work undertaken by individuals and groups working with offenders in custody and in the community”.

TAAGY was launched in 2008 in a bid to catch the culprits who cost York taxpayers thousands of pounds a year after council employers are left to clean up the mess across the city.

A joint venture between North Yorkshire Police, the City of York Council, the Safer York Partnership and the probation service, TAAGY works via a website holding a secure online database.

Members upload snapshots of scribblings blighting an area and add the images to an innovative web-based system to track down vandals. The system daily distributes details provided, such as the location and design of graffiti “tags”, direct to the community payback team to identify troublespots, helping prosecute offenders and aiding in the quick clean-up.

The community payback team are able to respond immediately, by sending out a working party of offenders to tackle the graffiti.

On average, offenders provide more than 150 hours of free labour every month and the TAGGY team estimate it has saved £30,000 for York taxpayers.

In November 2009, the TAGGY team helped secure a landmark ruling when the city’s first ASBO for a prolific graffiti vandal was given.

Four TAGGY representatives who led the project – Ian Cunningham, of Safer York Partnership, Ed Gray, community payback manager for York and North Yorkshire Probation Trust, Jackie Armitage, of environmental services for City of York Council, and Amy Fenwick, project manager for North Yorkshire Police – have been invited to the palace in early March.

The award will be one of 42 being presented this year to prison and probation staff throughout the UK.

York Press: The Press - Comment

Seal of approval

THE internet has many uses. And one of them, in York at least, has been helping in the fight against graffiti.

A pioneering online database run by TAAGY (Taking Action Against Graffiti) is updated regularly with snapshots of graffiti “tags”.

It helps the police and other organisations track down the graffiti vandals responsible, and ensure the mess they leave behind is cleaned up quickly.

Now the scheme is to get the national recognition it deserves.

Members of the TAAGY team will travel to Buckingham Palace to receive the Butler Trust award from Princess Anne.

It is good to see a scheme which has done so much to make York a cleaner, more pleasant place, getting the Royal seal of approval.

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