Area Unveiled For Families of Fallen Soldiers

18 July 2011, 07:36

Heart's found out families of soldiers who've died in combat will have somewhere to gather when their loved ones' bodies are brought back to England through the Thames Valley.

Thousands of people are expected to pay their respects to fallen soldiers at a memorial garden being built along the new repatriation route through the Thames Valley.

Work's started on the memorial at Norton Way in Carterton - it'll be unveiled in September, when repatriations switch from RAF Lynham in Wiltshire, to RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire later this year.

Michael Henderson from Oxfordshire's Royal British Legion told Heart "There's no there's thousands of people who wish to pay their respects, you have to have somewhere safe for people to stand to allow them to pay their respects."

Michael added "We get thousands who wish to pay their respects, who are not just in the military - they come from London from Birmingham from all over the country."

The memorial will feature a flag pole to fly the Union Flag during repatriations, and will be set in a simple garden made from local Cotswold stone - and will give grieving families an area to stand.

The memorial garden was designed by a small group of local people from Brize Norton and Carterton.

Around 2000 people are expected at repatriations along the new route. The first took place through Wootton Bassett, near RAF Lyneham, in June 2008.