saved byLevy Rivers on 2008-04-13
People outside must shudder at the thought of living in or even visiting Dewsbury in West Yorkshire.
It has become a byword for everything that is bad about Britain - the Dewsbury bomber, the veil row, the toddler who nearly died after being strung up from a tree, the story of a man crucified... and now the Shannon Matthews saga.
Indeed, some of the "tourists" who visited the estate in the wake of the Shannon headlines admitted they were disappointed not to find residents wearing electronic tags.
What they actually saw was a community fiercely united against all the odds, ready to welcome newcomers in for a coffee - but alert to any suspicious strangers.
"People, who have been judging about what type of clothes they wear or what language they use, should remember that community came out in their own time to help.
"They searched bins and gardens and climbed walls when they could have stayed in watching television. They have allowed the police to search their homes without any complaints.
