A “hideous” wall mural that would have cost taxpayers £40,000 has been withdrawn.

Campaigners are delighted that Waltham Forest Council has announced the designs, put forward by designer Matthew Raw, have been pulled “due to long-standing work commitments” for the artist.

The tile design, described as “hideous and meaningless” by campaigners, was set to appear at Chef’s Corner in Selby Road in Leytonstone as part of the council’s Making Places scheme, which sees each ward in the borough awarded funding for local art projects.

But the proposals faced fierce opposition from those living nearby due to the design itself and its cost.

Campaigner Ros Kane said: “We’ve very delighted. We found out on the website but we weren’t really surprised, Matthew Raw pulled out of a meeting before Christmas, perhaps that suggested he’d disengaged from it. I met him once and I got the impression he might pull out.

“I know he’s busy with other projects but I don’t think that was the real reason for him pulling out. What artist would want to put their work in an area where people are so opposed to it?

“It’s a really wonderful outcome, there were lots of reasons why people were opposed to it, but one of the many was that it was such a huge amount of money. You can get a mural painted for £7,000 and there are really deserving resources in the borough that need the money.

“We’re very happy the council has seen sense at last – a lot of campaigns don’t work but we’re very pleased this one did.”

Cllr Paul Douglas, junior cabinet member for culture at Waltham Forest Council, said: “The council is disappointed to confirm that Matthew Raw and Abigail Holsborough have had to withdraw from the Cann Hall Making Places project, which is the result of extended delays to the project and long-standing work commitments.

“Waltham Forest Council would like to thank Matthew and his project partner Abigail for their original ‘Embedded Bread’ project concept, which won the Making Places competition for Cann Hall ward, and their subsequent hard work and dedication to develop it.

“The community workshops were a great success, allowing local residents and children to get hands-on experience creating tiles and directly contributing to the project. We wish Matthew and Abigail the very best for their future projects. The council will now review the Making Places programme for Cann Hall ward and confirm next steps shortly.”