Council spends £25,000 on dealing with damage caused by vandalism in Southampton
Schools, libraries and cemeteries have all been targeted
A council has had to spend more than £25,000 in recent years to repair damage caused to its buildings in Southampton by vandals.
Incidents across the city have taken place at a wide range of sites, including cemetery buildings, libraries and schools.
A Freedom of Information request by the Local Democracy Reporting Service unearthed that the city council has paid out £25,978.60 on addressing non-housing vandalism issues since 2021.
Cabinet member for communities Cllr Josh Allen said alongside costing taxpayers money, dealing with vandalism took valuable time and resources away from the cleaning and repairs teams.
The council confirmed recorded vandalism included graffiti, broken pipework, roof damage and unauthorised access.
While the local authority did not disclose specific sites where damage took place as some were vacant, it said there had been incidents at kiosks, public conveniences, cemetery buildings, multi-storey car parks, nurseries, libraries, civic buildings, schools and allotments.
Cllr Allen said: “Southampton City Council takes all acts of vandalism extremely seriously. We encourage residents to report any vandalism that they see on any council owned building so that we can take steps to remove it.
“The council is proactive in looking to prevent vandalism on its property.
“We regularly inspect vacant sites to identify where potential vandalism may occur and report any incidents that have been seen.
“Staff on site at these locations proactively report vandalism before instructing the necessary repairs.”
Expenditure on dealing with incidents since 2021 peaked in 2023 when the council spent £17,450.90.
This fell to £2,141.45 last year, but it is already higher nine months into 2025 at £3,076.25.
Cllr Allen said: “Vandalism causes distress to residents who see it and those who rely on council buildings that are defaced.
“It also costs taxpayers money as well as taking valuable time and resources away from our cleaning and repairs teams.”