A HOT jet-wash machine is being used to clear graffiti from the streets of Wear Valley district.

The machine is being used across the district, including areas in Crook and Bishop Auckland.

It also clears chewing gum from pavements and fly posters.

Neighbourhood manager Des Hunt, from Wear Valley District Council, said: "If we reduce the amount of graffiti in an area, then we reduce the fear of crime, therefore making it a more pleasant place to live in.

"Graffiti has been a problem for years and there is no sign of the amount of it reducing."