COUNCIL bosses have been labelled ‘disgusting’ for allowing a war memorial to fall into a state of disrepair.

Several of the hundreds of soldiers’ names inscribed on the cenotaph in Rawtenstall Cemetery have faded or disappeared.

Valley residents slammed Rossendale Borough Council for neglecting the memorial, saying the First World War soldiers ‘deserved better’.

But the local authority said the cenotaph was cleaned and tided every October before Armistice Day.

And bosses vowed to assess its condition before working to secure the necessary funding to restore it.

Resident Peter Hargreaves said he noticed the cenotaph’s poor state when he went to take photographs of it for a historian.

He said: “What got me was the fact that the memorial is in a poor state.

“A lot of the writing has gone.

“Some names you can’t even see because the black lettering has disappeared. Surely these soldiers deserve better?

“It doesn’t seem that the powers that be care about our history of the brave men who fought and died for this country.”

The memorial was installed in 1915, just 13 months after the Great War started. It was restored in 1998, but has since become worn.

Michael Tinker, of Haslingden Royal British Legion Club, said: “I think it’s disgusting.

If they can build a halo on top of the hill, which is neither use nor ornament, but can’t pay for the upkeep of something like that, then it’s terrible.”

A Rossendale Council spokesman said: “We are assessing the condition of the memorial and identifying the cost of work.

"We will also contact the War Memorial commission to see if funding is available.”