The battle with nuisance seagulls in Worcester is being spearheaded by Worcester Council with the help of Spedian reusable vehicle graphics.

The council is using the system on the side of 15 bin lorries to advise residents about how to recycle their household waste to minimise the nuisance caused by flocks of seagulls which are tarnishing one of England's most historic cities.

The graphics explain what is ' and what is not ' acceptable in recycling, in a way residents can hardly fail to notice. An image of a seagull is accompanied by the message Feed the Bins not the Gulls.

The Spedian system enables the council to changes the graphics to reflect Worcester City Council's seasonal campaigns.

Panels can be attached or removed in less than an hour, without damaging the vehicle or requiring any nuts, bolts, screws or rails, and can even be stored for later re-use.

Kevin McFeeley, Transport Manager for Worcester City Council, said: 'One of our biggest challenges is ensuring our residents know how to dispose of their recycling and waste correctly.

'Messages on refuse trucks are ideal because the vehicles are driving around the local area, going right our residents' front doors. This means that messages on the sides of our vehicles are hard to miss. 

'Seasonal campaigns can be very effective. We're currently running one on the theme of 'feed the bins, not the gulls', and at the end of the year there will be one advising residents what to do with their Christmas trees'