AN East Lancashire mason has stepped in to offer his services to a cash-strapped council who said they could not afford to honour a local war hero.

Marco Lysiuk said he was willing to inscribe a soldier's name for free on Great Harwood's war memorial after Hyndburn Borough Council refused to pay for the work.

Great Harwood-born Marine Robert Anthony Clark was killed in 1951 but despite pleas from his family the work has never been carried out.

Robert died on November 28, 1951, after a being shot accidentally by a colleague while on manoeuvres in Malaya.

Hyndburn Council, which is trying to fill an £800,000 budget gap, said the work could not be done until the start of the next financial year.

But Marco and wife Sheila, who run Darwen Memorials and live in Accrington's Manchester Road, said the work had to be done as soon as possible.

Sheila said: "The whole thing is very sad because our war heroes should not be forgotten. It wouldn't cost a great deal of money but we would still do it for free.

"We feel the monument and Mr Clark's plight is part of our community and its history and should not be overlooked."

Marco said the work would normally cost around £2 a letter.

Hyndburn Council leader Peter Britcliffe said he was now willing to look at the matter again. He added: "We are very pleased and interested to hear that a local monumental mason would be able to complete the work for £2 per letter, as our original estimates were considerably higher than this.

"I would be more than happy to discuss his offer further with him, with a view to getting the work done.

"I can only reiterate that the council does consider it extremely important that Robert Clark's memory and service to his country is commemorated properly, and we had planned to carry out the work in the Spring to ensure this."

Mr Clark's brother George, of Grimshaw Street, Great Harwood, said: "I'm gobsmacked something has happened so quickly. I'm very pleased but I wonder how many other names are not up there from places like the Suez crisis."

Sheila said her company had experience of working on war memorials and had built a monument for the Queen's Lancashire Regiment which they installed at a cemetery in northern France.

She explained: "About four years ago we were asked by the regiment to make a monument for a cemetery in Bois-Halbout so we know what we are talking about."

Both the council and the Royal British Legion said they have no idea why Robert's name was never included on the Great Harwood memorial in Memorial Park