A VULNERABLE Blaenavon man suffering from epilepsy and threatened with eviction by Torfaen County Borough Council is to stay in his home.

Driven to distraction by illegal fly tippers dumping in his council flat garden, and staring homelessness in the face for the second time in his life, Arthur Edwards, 37, (pictured) who has epilepsy and learning difficulties, felt he had nowhere left to turn.

He was told by Torfaen council officers to remove the items, which included two cookers, four televisions, a car bonnet, a microwave and tables - or face the consequences.

At the same time, he was lobbying the council for repairs to the wall in his bathroom which is cracked and letting in rain water.

But now Torfaen council has done a U-turn and agreed to clear up Mr Edwards' garden at Ty Fry Close.

He said: "I went to stay with my brother in November for a couple of months, and when I got back in January I was confronted by a garden full of rubbish.

"I've told the council the stuff wasn't mine until I was blue in the face."

Neighbour and friend Jill Morris said the dumping must have happened late at night. She and sons Graham, 23 and Alex 18 regularly keep an eye on their neighbour, who suffers from the most severe form of epileptic fits.

"My two sons look out for him - there's a lot of people just taking advantage of his good nature," she said, adding: "He should be getting more support."

Despite the problems, Mr Edwards said he was extremely happy with his home of three and a half years, and said he felt very much part of a friendly community. "Words can't express how grateful I am to my neighbours."

A council spokesperson said: "While the housing department do not remove items from tenants' gardens, our contract services department do offer a free bulky household item collection service.

"They were informed about Mr Edwards' situation and arranged for the items to be removed the next day."