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Meet the twins cleaning up our streets

James and John Makanjuola James and John Makanjuola are standing side-by-side, smiling and looking directly at the camera. They are wearing matching black hoodies and tracksuit trousers. The hoodies have a logo on the left which reads 'Makagroup' and the twins are each pointing towards the logo.James and John Makanjuola
James and John Makanjuola said they set up their own cleaning business after realising how "disgusting" student digs were

As teenagers, these twin brothers spent time living on the streets - now they're determined to clean them up.

James and John Makanjuola have been in Southampton voluntarily cleaning street signs and bins.

It's something they've made a name for themselves doing on social media.

The pair set up their company Makagroup after going to university in Bournemouth and Portsmouth, where they realised student housing could be "grubby".

They've become so-called "guerilla cleaners" and alongside their own cleaning business, they take time to give back to the community.

John Makanjuola says some people are confused when they see him and his brother cleaning

'Grubby places'

John says he and his family became homeless when he and James were 15 and it was this experience that inspired them to launch the business.

John, who went to the University of Portsmouth, explained: "When I was at university, we saw a lot of dirty student accommodation.

"My flatmates were sort of dirty. I used to be the one that used to clean it up so I said 'why don't we start a cleaning company for students?'

"That's how it all started. We've seen some grubby places."

James and John Makanjuola James and John Makanjuola are outside on a bridge, cleaning. They are both looking at the camera and smiling, with one behind the other and wearing matching black hoodies and tracksuit trousers.James and John Makanjuola
The pair went to Portsmouth and Bournemouth universities before setting up Makagroup

James, who went to Bournemouth University, said as their business grew they started looking elsewhere to clean.

He explained: "There was an area we walked past every day. We looked at each other and said 'why don't we just clean it?' and put it on social media because we wanted to show people how good we are at cleaning.

"When we did it, we never realised we were doing it for the community, that people would love it."

The pair, originally from Croydon, now travel the south of England finding spots to clean and want to "make the world a cleaner environment".

They've gained thousands of followers on social media, who have watched them clean Wembley, Covent Garden, the London Underground and Fratton Park.

James explained: "We always said that we are going to never let our children experience what we experienced, and from a very young age we started thinking 'what can we do?'"

John added: "I think it's because we're giving back to the community and we're doing it without asking for anything in return.

"If we have fun doing it, people watching our videos can see the excitement."

John Makanjuola stands on a ladder in a street in Southampton, holding a window wiper and cleaning a sign pointing towards the train station. He wears a black hoodie and black tracksuit while his twin brother can be seen holding the ladder wearing the same outfit.
They say one of the main reasons they do what they do is because they enjoy cleaning

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