A pensioner put a whole town to shame yesterday when he was the only one to answer a call to show civic pride by helping rid its streets of litter. Graham Dunn, 69, was the only member of the public who turned out to help spruce up North Walsham, organised to get the town ready for a visit by Anglia in Bloom floral judges next week.

A pensioner put a whole town to shame yesterday when he was the only one to answer a call to show civic pride by helping rid its streets of litter.

Graham Dunn, 69, was the only member of the public who turned out to help spruce up North Walsham, organised to get the town ready for a visit by Anglia in Bloom floral judges next week.

He was the only resident of the town's 12,000 population who responded after the town council asked for a residents' working party to remove rubbish and litter from the Market Place, Church Street and Kings Arms Loke.

Mr Dunn, who was joined by the mayor, three town councillors and two members of the Griffon Area Partnership, put other residents to shame as he spent the morning tidying up his home town.

He said: “I just think the whole town looks filthy and there is rubbish everywhere. I hear a lot of people say it is the council's job to remove rubbish but I think everyone has to a part to play.

“All it needs is for every street or road to have one person who clears up rubbish every now and again and the whole town would look clean.”

The lack of clean up volunteers follows recent criticism that not enough residents are putting their names forward to help put up the town's Christmas lights.

Town clerk Margaret Foster said: “I just feel very disappointed by the turn out because everybody complains about the town being dirty, but when the push comes to shove they do not do anything to help.”