Professional clowns and politicians alike have condemned the current worldwide craze of people dressing up as clowns to terrorise people.

The World Clown Association president Randy Christensen said the craze was being propelled by social media and the association did not consider people participating in it as clowns.

‘”We’re full of people that love children, bring smiles and want to help people laugh and bring comic relief,” he told 6PR radio.

“The people dressing up are trying to scare people, no professional clown would ever take part in anything like that.”

Mr Christensen said clowns who were members of the association had job cancellations and felt the incidents were having a negative impact on how society viewed them.

WA Labor leader Mark McGowan urged people to do something more productive with their time.

“My advice for them would be go to the library, join a sporting club or make your mother dinner,” he told reporters.

The first incidents were reported in August of clowns trying to lure children into woods in South Carolina in the US.

The trend has spread globally including to Australia.

A 19-year-old man dressed as a clown was accused of chasing a group of teenage girls to a WA police station on Saturday night.

He was charged with disorderly behaviour and possessing a disguise, which is unlawful if used to conceal one’s identity while committing an offence.

A woman reported hitting a pedestrian dressed as a clown in Perth about 12.30am on Sunday, but the person could not be found after they ran into nearby bushland.

Victorian, Queensland and South Australian police have warned people they do not tolerate any anti-social behaviour.

A Facebook group called Perth Clown Purge began last week, telling followers “we are coming”.

On Monday they posted “since school is back tomorrow we will be shutting down one school”.

Another Facebook group, also titled Perth Clown Purge, posted on the same day that their page was being shut down due to a police investigation.

There is also a Perth Clown Watch group, which says it is “for the people of Perth, protecting them from whatever is hiding under the makeup and masks” and publishes updates of clown sightings.

-AAP