URMSTON Bonfire organiser Alan Vernon is inviting Eamonn Holmes to see the work carried out by offenders supervised by GMPT’s Community Payback team.

The This Morning presenter and journalist published a column in a national newspaper criticising Community Payback.

He stated: “hHave you ever seen anyone in your neighbourhood carrying out Community Payback... If you have let me know because I sure haven’t.”

Alan, of Lawrence Road, Flixton, first approached Greater Manchester Probation Trust two-years-ago to enlist the work of offenders to help prepare for the annual bonfire extravaganza.

He said: “I am extremely impressed by the work offenders do for the Urmston community.

“I’d love for Eamonn to attend Urmston bonfire and see the preparatory work the offenders put in, and then the tidy-up they do on the following day.”

The annual Urmston Community Bonfire, in Abbotsfield Park, raises thousands of pounds for charity and is an extremely popular fixture.

Offenders, supervised by the Greater Manchester Probation Trust’s Community Payback team, stack pallets and wood to help make the bonfire and clear-up the site on the following day.

Alan said: “Last year the help we received was exemplary. One of the offenders in particular was outstanding and told me ‘a bit of hard graft never hurt anybody’.

“I couldn’t praise them enough.”

This year’s bonfire is on Saturday, November 3rd, at 5.30pm and tickets are priced £5 adults and £3 under-16s and OAPs and three-years and under are free