Swindon's cigarette bollards 'don't align' with public health message
The artworks have sprung up in the last few days
A set of bollards in Swindon have been painted to look like cigarettes being stubbed out, but mystery surrounds how the design came to be.
The artworks have been spotted in recent days, with no clues as to who's behind them.
Some people on social media have called them creative, while others think they're unsightly.
Swindon Borough Council tell us it's nothing to do with them, and they're also not in keeping with local public health messages.
In a statement they've said: “We love street art in Swindon and this is certainly a very unusual choice of design.
“We don’t want to stub out the flame of this artist’s creativity, but the artwork obviously doesn’t align with the efforts of our Public Health team to get people to quit smoking.
“We very much hope that passers-by who have kicked the habit don’t develop old cravings but, if they do, we’d encourage them and any other smokers to visit the Council’s website and search ‘Stop Smoking Services’ for a range of advice and support.
“In the meantime, if the artist who painted it could get in touch we can discuss an alternative design that does not provide free advertising for tobacco companies.”