Offensive graffiti daubed on walls at Lincoln art gallery

The graffiti has also been daubed on artwork in the Temple Gardens

CCTV is to be installed at a Lincoln art gallery after offensive graffiti was painted on walls and artworks.

The Usher Gallery and the adjacent Temple Gardens have seen repeated incidents over the past year, a city council meeting heard.

It included pornographic drawings, Nazi symbols and misogynistic comments.

The county council said it was working with police and local colleges and schools "to try and identify perpetrators".

Labour councillor Bob Bushell, Portfolio Holder for Remarkable Place, said the site was managed by Lincolnshire County Council, but that city officers had been working with them to deter future attacks.

"Officers are in the advanced stages of installation of CCTV now to offer some protection for both the gallery and the temple building itself," he said.

"Graffiti that is carried out without permission is not art, it is vandalism and as a city council we take it very seriously. Offensive graffiti when reported is removed within 24 hours remaining as possible."

One councillor described some of the graffiti as "extremely offensive"

Conservative councillor Mark Storer told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that some of the graffiti was "extremely offensive".

"If we are keen to promote our green spaces and attractions to residents and visitors, then they should be in reasonable order," he said.

"The area has become unpleasant especially for those with young families and I believe that additional CCTV would not only serve as a deterrent and be cost saving in the long term, but would also allow the Council to identify those responsible."