FOR almost 12 months, it was the only place 250 refugees from war-torn Kosovo could call home.

The disused parts of Calderstones mental hospital, in Mitton, near Whalley, were far removed from what the Albanian refugees were used to.

They had fled their homes during ethnic cleansing instigated by Serbian leader Slobodan Milosevic, as he took the Balkans to the verge of civil war.

The men, women and children benefited from a warm Lancashire welcome in 1999, and when they left a year later, tears were shed as they said goodbye to new friends made locally.

Almost five years on, and a lasting memorial to the Kosovars' time in Mitton has been unveiled.

Written on the plaque, underneath a tree planted in the Kosovars' honour several years ago and attacked several times by vandals since, is the inscription Miku i mire nijhet ne dite te veshtire -- Albanian for 'A friend in need is a friend indeed.'