TWO men have come into the Dunmow Broadcast office to reassure the public that they are just two harmless blokes trying to get by. The pair, reported on last week s front page, decided to speak in person to reporter Nick Thompson to say the public are per

TWO men have come into the Dunmow Broadcast office to reassure the public that they are just two harmless blokes trying to get by.

The pair, reported on last week's front page, decided to speak in person to reporter Nick Thompson to say the public are perfectly safe around their camp in Olives Wood.

Remaining anonymous they said: "We are both painters and decorators, and one of us also trains dogs for a living. The only reason we are being forced to live in a wood is because we really can't afford to buy a house. We don't want people to judge us on what they have heard because we are just two friendly blokes trying to get by."

They both said they had no problem with people walking their dogs nearby and welcome anybody who talks to them.

They said: "We know a couple of local residents who have no problem at all with us, and there is no way our dogs are vicious. We just want to be considered as local residents like anyone else. We want to live and work in Dunmow."

They emphasised that recently they were involved in a very neighbourly act when they fixed a child's bike in the road after a chain had come off.

The Broadcast did try and speak to the two men last week but couldn't locate them and by accident spoke to a different person with a dog instead.

They said: "We are not here to cause trouble and the police seem happy to let us stay. We chose to move from Stansted because we were looking for work in this area. We are also trying to buy a flat in the near future when we have saved enough cash."

What do you think? Should these homeless men be helped or shunned or just left alone? Write with your views to Nick Thompson at The Broadcast, 2 Angel Lane, Dunmow, Essex CM6 1AQ.