War memorial that was knocked over by car repaired

A village war memorial toppled after being struck by a car has been repaired.

It was badly damaged in Maulden, Bedfordshire, at about 03:20 BST on 27 April.

Police said a vehicle was recovered from the scene on Ampthill Road and no arrests had yet been made.

Maulden Parish Council clerk, Tracey Bearton, said the stonemasons had reinforced the structure with steel rods, and added: Don’t crash into it as you are going to come off worse this time."

The memorial was installed in 1920 to honour people from Maulden who died in combat during World War One.

Fallen soldiers from World War Two were later added to the granite tribute, which has 36 names inscribed on it.

Ms Bearton said the memorial has been in the village for more than 100 years and people had missed it after the crash.

She said some of the wording needed painting and the concrete foundations needed to be fixed, which should happen by the end of June.

The memorial was erected originally in three separate parts, so when it was struck the top and middle plinth toppled over.

It has now been strengthened with rods inside so the different blocks are all connected.

Ms Bearton said the cost to repair the memorial, which was covered by its insurers, was about £6,000.

However, she said that had the Cornish granite structure needed replacing it would have cost about £30,000 and as a result they are altering its insurance cover.

The work of the stonemasons to bring the memorial back to its former glory had been "brilliant", she added.

Bedfordshire Police continues to appeal for witnesses or anyone who may have information about the incident to get in touch.

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