Liam Keen, a man who spent a period sleeping in a van following a relationship breakdown, has been cleaning graffiti and dirty road signs across Surrey – including in and around Guildford – while dressed as Batman.
From hardship to neighbourhood action
Keen says his project began after he found himself living in a vehicle with his dog, Angel, during a winter when he was managing a chronic illness and struggling to afford heating and food. Help from local residents in places such as Normandy, Ash and Ash Vale prompted him to try to give something back to the community that supported him.
"I decided the best way to pay them back for their kindness was to pay it forward," Keen told reporters, explaining that he started picking up litter and cleaning graffiti and road signs each morning. The work, he said, was a practical response to the help he received and an attempt to improve the local environment.
"I decided the best way to pay them back for their kindness was to pay it forward."
Why the costume?
Keen and his companion cleaner, Dennis Rawlings (nicknamed "Robin"), say the decision to adopt superhero costumes came after a passerby described them as "superheroes" while they were working. Keen said the outfits help draw attention to the work they do and bring a lighter, more visible element to what might otherwise go unnoticed.
- Work carried out: picking up litter, removing graffiti, cleaning road signs.
- Areas mentioned: Normandy, Ash, Ash Vale and Guildford environs.
- Recognition: an award from the mayor for services to the community.
Keen says residents offered him support during his low point, including offers of work and care for the dogs, which ultimately helped him get back on his feet. He has also spoken openly about the personal pressures he faced at the time, including caring for his dog Angel as she had five puppies while he was living in the van.
Local response and implications
The story points to two clear local dynamics. First, neighbours in and around Guildford provided informal support that made a tangible difference to someone in crisis. Second, local civic life benefits when residents take initiative to maintain public spaces. Keen’s account indicates that individual acts of kindness can ripple back into community upkeep and pride.
His efforts were formally recognised when he won an award from the mayor for services to the community. That acknowledgement, combined with the unusual spectacle of a costumed cleaner, has helped to raise awareness of litter and graffiti as issues that affect neighbourhoods’ appearance and residents’ feelings about their public realm.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Volunteer cleaners | Liam Keen (Batman) and Dennis Rawlings (Robin) |
| Areas served | Normandy, Ash, Ash Vale and around Guildford |
| Recognition | Award from the mayor for services to the community |
While the costumes bring a smile, the wider issue of visible grime and vandalism is one that councils and residents regularly contend with. Community-led efforts such as Keen’s do not replace formal services, but they can supplement them and act as a prompt for neighbours and local authorities to pay attention.
Keen describes his work simply: he wanted to "make the place a bit better and brighter" and to have a laugh while doing it. For many in the towns where he has worked, the sight of a costumed cleaner has become a recognisable act of neighbourliness, drawing attention to the small acts that keep public spaces functioning and welcoming.
Local people who have followed Keen’s story say it is an example of how informal community support can help someone recover after difficult times – and how that recovery can, in turn, feed back into the community as public service.
