A town council chairman fears tourists could be put off visiting an historic Suffolk town by posters that have been put up claiming the place smells and is covered in litter.

Clive Eastwood, chair of Framlingham Town Council, called on the person responsible for putting up the posters to come forward and explain why they feel the town is in a shabby state, saying that in his opinion the town was "pretty tidy".

He said he was aware of two posters in the town - one of which had been stuck to the town’s main noticeboard.

East Anglian Daily Times: A mystery bill sticker has put up posters suggesting Framlingham has litter and smell problemsA mystery bill sticker has put up posters suggesting Framlingham has litter and smell problems (Image: Archant)

The images show a public bench covered in plastic bags next to an overflowing waste bin.

Around the picture are the words ‘Framlingham - a smelly place to linger.’

The town’s castle attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors a year and Mr Eastwood said volunteers helped to keep the castle fields clear of litter.

Meanwhile, bins in the town were cleared by East Suffolk Council’s contractor Norse, which provides waste management services.

In addition, he said a contractor was responsible for clearing areas the town council owned at Pageant Field and The Fens.

“From my point of view, it creates a false image, but I really do not know where it is coming from. Nobody has officially written in or rung in to say there is a particular problem somewhere.

“There is no problem with litter and therefore I am at a little bit at a loss to say what it is all about,” Mr Eastwood said.

An item has appeared on the town council website slamming the poster when "a lot of people had worked hard to make the town look lovely for the Queen’s platinum jubilee".

Mr Eastwood added: “We do try to keep the place neat and tidy and I would like the people who have put these notices up to come forward and say what point they were trying to make.”