OFFENDERS doing Community Payback have fixed more than 500 ornamental poppies to lamp posts across Bolton as part of Remembrance Sunday commemorations.

People sentenced to unpaid work orders by magistrates have been praised by councillors for the speedy completion of the task.

The Cheshire & Greater Manchester Community Rehabilitation Company supervised offenders doing the same work last year, and were invited back. The Mayor of Bolton, Cllr Elaine Sherrington, said: “Community Payback is really worthwhile service and it was heartening to see the team doing such a good job.”

Mark Pimblett, a community payback supervisor who helped to manage the project, said: “We were delighted to help, and it was a really good task for the lads to do. They were getting thumbs-up gestures from passers-by and it was clear people were really impressed by their efforts.”

Two men held the ladder while one fixed a cable to each poppy and another climbed the ladder to set it to the lamp post.

Community Payback tasks range from maintaining churchyards through to graffiti removal, litter picking and providing food to the elderly.