Breckland Council pauses murals project in Dereham

Breckland Council has said it was pausing 'Memoirs through Murals' following its cabinet meeting earlier this month as it now looks into how a 'draft concept' image was released.

Councillor Paul Claussen, the council's executive member for economic development, said: “I understand it will be frustrating for everyone involved, including residents, businesses and community groups.

“The project was designed to improve our high street and attract visitors, but sadly this has now become a political issue.

“I can assure residents that artwork shared recently online was not the final designs, and it’s disappointing that concepts have been released outside of the project at this early stage."

Roger Atterwill, Breckland's Independent group leader, posted the concept image on social media on February 11.

Mr Atterwill had taken a hard copy of the image to the February 6 cabinet meeting, where he said no councillor denied that this was the image during the public participation session.

Roger Atterwill, Leader of the Independent Group at Breckland Council (Image: Breckland District Council)

Mr Atterwill said his impression was that the image was in the public domain because it was being consulted upon, and that therefore posting it to Facebook was allowed.

Mr Atterwill said he questioned the council's priorities by pledging money to the project. 

He said: “This isn't about the image, it is about spending public money on this during a cost-of-living crisis."

War Mural in Thetford (Image: Victoria Pertusa)

"If you're struggling to pay your bills and put food on the table, and you see that artwork, and the £34,000 being spent on it, you have to question if the authority has their priorities right.”

Mr Atterwill's post prompted hundreds of objections to the murals, with many labelling the project a “waste of money”.

Paul Claussen, the executive member for economic development and growth at Breckland Council, (Image: Breckland Council)