Residents of a village plagued by graffiti want the culprits to consider the damage they are doing.

Spray-painted "tags" have appeared around Sible Hedingham in recent weeks, with the most recent being a four foot high red painting on a wall at Bewick Court.

Parish council chairman Gillian Massey said: “It’s something no-one wants to see. It isn’t something we have had a problem with in the past.

“We would just like to find out who’s doing it, nobody’s come forward so we are completely in the dark.

“At first, there was a little spate of graffiti that trailed from Halstead to Sible Hedingham that made us think it wasn’t local, but it seems to be appearing quite a lot now.”

Mrs Massey said the the people doing it might think their work is artistic, but it is not appreciated by villagers.

“We would like them to stop and consider the effect of what they are doing,” she said.

“People live here because they enjoy village life and they want to continue to enjoy it.”

Mrs Massey said a perspex sheet at the bus stop in Oxford Road had to be replaced at a cost of £80, which comes out of the parish council’s coffers.

She said: “It’s just squiggles really. It isn’t artistic, it’s just a bit of a mess. I don’t think we could compare it to Banksy.”