Angry Ledbury residents have protested at what they say is a poor restoration of the town’s war memorial.

Campaigners held placards outside The Stone Workshop in Weobley, the contractors who carried out the work on behalf of Ledbury Town Council, last Friday (January 21).

Work to repair the monument took place in 2020 following a donation of more than £30,000 by Stuart Heaton, a former RAF navigator on Lancaster bombers.

But by February 2021, cracks had started to appear on the memorial and green mould was visible on parts of the monument.

Steve Ellis, an experienced construction site manager, first examined the monument in October 2020 and prepared an unofficial report for Ledbury Town Council noting a number of trip hazards around the base of the memorial.

Mr Ellis said he carried out a more detailed inspection in April 2021 and claimed the wrong materials had been used and that there were problems with the drainage around the monument.

“Ledbury Town Council have now placed wooden planters around the war memorial, but there are still a number of paving slabs cracked and moving around that still remain a cause for concern,” he said.

Pauline Preedy, who attended the protest, said: “The memorial looks worse than it did before the restoration. It looks a mess, so we’re kicking up a fuss. A member of my family is on there - Billy Loade, who was only in his 20s.

“Most people I know have a family member on the cenotaph - this is not a fuss about nothing.”

The Stone Workshop said the matter is in the hands of the company’s solicitors.

A statement from Ledbury mayor Andrew Manns and deputy mayor Phillip Howells, on behalf of the town council, said: “Ledbury Town Council recognises the strong feeling of the local community on this subject. They are not involved in the organising of this demonstration, nor have they encouraged it. 

“Ledbury Town Council are actively seeking a resolution to this issue with the Stone Workshop through the council’s solicitors and have been advised by its solicitors not to comment further until a resolution with the Stone Workshop has been found.”