A mural designed by school children to deter adults from dumping rubbish on the streets was fly tipped not long after being finished.

Undercroydon, run by artists Jeanne Marie Eayrs and Susan Beresford, is piloting the Heritage Lottery funded project in Bensham Manor working with primary school age children at Paxton Academy and Bensham Manor to create the 8ft puppy dog mural character which has its paw on a globe of the world next to a sign saying I love My Street.

The aim is that pressure from the younger generation will influence the habits of adults, however in the case of the mural on the BT building on the corner of Frant and Brigstock Road, a known flytipping hot spot, the ignorant rubbish dumpers took no notice of the children’s art work.

Statistics have revealed that  8,344 fly-tipping incidents were reported to Croydon Council in the first  five months of year with the most blighted ward  Thornton Heath, with 956 incidents. 

In four years Don’t Mess with Croydon has taken  20 prosecutions to court. The majority of cases don’t end up in court and those caught littering are usually issued with a fixed penalty notice. 

Thornton Heath has always been one of the worst places in Croydon for fly tipping but the long term fix still evades the council and many of the same  local  roads have been repeatedly fly tipped for four years or more. The council is promising more resources increasing its enforcement team from 40 to 60.

Cllr Stuart Collins, cabinet member for Clean Green Croydon, said: “The Council’s review of how our enforcement officers work including the new ones recruited is being completed mid November. We already have the intelligence re the hotspots and Thornton Heath is a priority area when we work out where the staff resources will