Graffiti-busters patrol the South Bank

The scheme's backers say that the service will help to improve quality of life for residents and employees as well as making the South Bank more attractive for the 15 million visitors who come to the area every year.

Five days a week, in working hours, the team patrols the area between Blackfriars Bridge and Lambeth Bridge and inland to Stamford Street. The team also responds to calls from businesses reporting graffiti on their estates.

Graffiti is removed within 24 hours of it being reported or within 4 hours should it be offensive.

"In the past, there has been a very mixed level of provision, with some businesses monitoring their own estates and others reliant on the London Borough of Lambeth," explains Adrian Couch, projects director for South Bank Employers' Group.

"The new service replaces this piecemeal approach with reliable, consistent and standardised provision."

The service is funded by planning gain (section 106) cash from Lambeth Council and contributions from the area's large employers. It is managed by South Bank Employers' Group on behalf of South Bank Partnership.

Future projects are planned to co-ordinate security patrols, CCTV, street cleansing and maintenance in the area.