GRAFFITI artists in Burnley and Padiham are being warned there is no hiding place as hit squads move in on their handiwork.

Council bosses have set aside £25,000 to give the borough a late ‘spring clean’, also cracking down on dog fouling and littering.

Contractors will be targeting underpasses and subways, and other graffiti ‘grotspots’, over the next 12 months in a bid to remove the daubs.

High-pressure sprays are being used to remove the most offensive messages first and has been welcomed by Coun Tony Harrison, community services cabinet member He said: “This will include high-profile cleaning of the town’s gateways, litter-picking, extra resources on weed-spraying work and continuing to tackle dog fouling.

“In recent years our borough has generally become cleaner and tidier, thanks to support from residents and a commitment from the council to crackdown on the selfish minority who simply don’t care. We’re determined to continue that hard work and make further improvement.

“We also know there are hotspot areas where there are particular problems. This campaign will concentrate on those areas and make sure they are ‘blitzed’ to help improve the way they look.”

And he is urging residents to come forward and nominate their own particular bugbears.

Coun Harrison added: “We need help from residents to report those who are responsible for this kind of anti-social behaviour so we can catch them and fine them.

“The council is the second most effective in the country in terms of prosecuting fly-tippers and we are determined to continue to target those that break the law.”