Walk through Tonbridge today and you’ll likely spot it—spray-painted tags under bridges, scribbled slogans on shop shutters, and the occasional more elaborate mural bursting with colour. Depending on who you ask, it’s either a blight on the town or a misunderstood form of expression.
According to Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council, graffiti is criminal damage—defined as “any inscription, marking, writing, painting or drawing, illicitly scratched, scribbled, drawn, cut, carved, posted, pasted sprayed or painted on any surface.” And while it can take the form of artistic murals, it’s more often associated with anti-social behaviour and costly clean-up operations. In fact, UK-wide estimates put the annual bill for graffiti removal at over £1 billion.
Tonbridge hasn’t escaped the problem. In 2024 alone, 35 incidents of graffiti were reported to the Borough Council’s waste services. While police figures are not publicly available, reports suggest many cases go unreported. The area around Medway Wharf, in particular, has seen an increase in tagging, raising concerns among residents, councillors and businesses alike.
The Council’s approach is clear: they’ll remove graffiti from public land and council-owned property, prioritising offensive material and highly visible locations near schools and main roads. But private buildings, railway infrastructure and telephone boxes fall outside their remit—though they do contact landowners and, in some cases, deploy Community Payback teams to clean up the mess.
There have been small but significant wins. Graffiti was removed from the side of ‘Cook’ on the High Street with the help of a Community Payback team and a temporary road closure. Similar clean-ups have happened at the former Peacocks store, Wharf House and the rear of the Post Office on Quarry Hill, thanks to successful coordination between the council and property owners.
Despite these efforts, the graffiti returns. And it begs the question: should Tonbridge do more to embrace graffiti as a legitimate form of expression, rather than simply trying to scrub it away?
Last year, the council considered the idea of “graffiti walls”—designated spaces for street artists to work legally. The consultation received a low response rate (just 115 people out of a population of over 130,000), but most who did reply were in favour: 57 supported the idea, 47 were against, and 11 were undecided.
Supporters made a compelling case:
“Some graffiti is actually very good. Local parks would be a great place to have a graffiti wall.”
“Work with graffiti artists, embrace them, offer collaborations with shops, leisure facilities, libraries… make them feel valued.”
“Instead of saying no and excluding, how about saying yes and being inclusive… you never know, Tonbridge may just have the next Banksy!”
Despite these comments, the council ultimately said no—unless the artwork in question is by the elusive Banksy himself.
The current strategy focuses on education and enforcement. Local police are visiting schools to discuss the consequences of graffiti and its impact on communities, and CCTV is being encouraged to catch offenders. Anti-graffiti paint is being trialled in some areas, and the council continues to urge residents to report graffiti via their online form.
Still, the question lingers: Is a zero-tolerance approach sustainable? Or should the town make room for creative expression in a way that benefits both artists and the community?
After all, graffiti isn’t going away. And perhaps, if handled differently, it could be a canvas for civic pride rather than a symbol of urban decay.
How to report graffiti
Graffiti can be reported online through the Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council website or via the Love Clean Streets app. The app is available for both Apple and Android devices, and allows you to upload a photo, pinpoint the location on a map, and send it off for action in under a minute. It’s surprisingly easy—and surprisingly satisfying.
You can also report graffiti directly to Tom Tugendhat MP, who has been actively encouraging residents to share incidents of graffiti in the community. In fact, many reports made through his platform are then passed on to the relevant council teams for quicker resolution. If you’re not sure which authority is responsible for a particular site, this can be a good way to ensure your report is seen and followed up.
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