OFFENDERS and veterans worked side by side to restore Whitworth Memorial Gardens in time for Remembrance Day.

Over the years, rain run-off had led to the total collapse of the wall, which runs the length of the gardens surrounding the monument, to the point where it was impossible to tell there had been a wall there at all.

Local charity Veterans in Communities was keen to restore the area as part of 100th anniversary commemorations of the start of the First World War.

They approached the Cumbria and Lancashire Community Rehabilitation Company, which led to a team of offenders on Community Payback being involved.

The project began in April where all the fallen stones were collected and refurbished and a new dry stone wall built. The area was then landscaped, a willow tank and soldier were planted on the Whitworth boundary and a new stone seating area put in place.

Community Payback team leader Paul Blezard, an ex-Royal Marine, said: “Everybody worked with real commitment and were dedicated to doing a good job on such a meaningful project. We did have some periods of heavy rain which didn’t help our progress, but we got the wall finished in time for Remembrance Sunday and we’re pleased with the final result."