National Memorial Arboretum

Alrewas, Staffordshire

Memorial is no. 411.

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In 1988 Commander David Childs CBE wished to establish a national focus or a “centre” for Remembrance forming a living tribute to service men and women for future generations to reflect upon and enjoy. In 1994 an appeal was launched by the Prime Minister, John Major, and the agreement of three key proposals assured its future.

History of the National Memorial Arboretum

The project began with no money, no land, no staff and no trees. National Lottery funding provided a grant of some forty per cent of the cost and this was matched by thousands of donations, both large and small, from a wide variety of organisations, both military and civilian, men and women, corporate and voluntary.

The site would be the location of the Armed Forces Memorial. The Ministry of Defence would pay a significant grant-in-aid allowing free entry and The Royal British Legion would accept the gift of the site as the focus for the Nations’ year-round Remembrance.

The former gravel abstraction workings at Alrewas became the site of the NMA following its gifting by Lafarge in 1997, and the initial planting took place thanks to grants from the Forestry Commission and the National Forest.

The Arboretum was officially opened on 16 May 2001.

It is now part of The Royal British Legion family of charities.

The first BNTVA Memorial, 2006

Following the passing of his great friend Peter Williams, BNTVA activist Bob Smith was inspired by the work of his Grandfather who was involved in the recovery and reburial of bodies from the battlefields of the Great War and in the construction of Commonwealth War Grave Cemeteries for both wars.

Bob campaigned tirelessly in his own words “to ensure those that have been lost will never be airbrushed from the face of history” and, in 2006, Bob accompanied Peter’s widow ‘Gron’ to the new BNTVA plot at the NMA where they unveiled the memorial.

The second BNTVA memorial, 2012

This memorial served as the centre of the nuclear test communities' remembrance until 2012, where it was noted that the fabric of the structure was suffering from exposure to the elements.

A decision was made to create a new longer lasting memorial which would carry the marble plaque from the old memorial and be moved to a more striking position within the BNTVA plot. This was unveiled on the 3rd October 2012 by Bob Smith in his final duty to the BNTVA before taking his long-deserved retirement.

The 3rd of October had become synonymous with the British Nuclear Test Community as it had been chosen by members from Portsmouth to commemorate the first test of a British atomic device, Operation Hurricane, in 1952. Adopting this date, the British Nuclear Test Veterans Association named it National Atomic Veterans Awareness Day (NAVAD) from a suggestion by Bob Smith.

The two extensions, 2016

The BNTVA had paid for the new memorial and its development had been constrained by the available funds. In 2016, an opportunity arose for the Association to bid for funding to complete the national memorial in line with the original aspiration. Funding was gained and the responsibility for delivering the final additions to the memorial was passed to the Nuclear Community Charity Fund under their Remembrance project.

Following delays negotiating amendments to the design to comply with NMA planning conditions, the new memorial additions were finally unveiled and dedicated at a ceremony marking NAVAD 2018. BNTVA veterans Derek Hickman RE and Terry Washington RN were chosen to unveil the two memorial extensions.

The dedication services for all the versions of the BNTVA memorial at the National Memorial Arboretum  were conducted by the BNTVA Chaplin, The Very Reverend Nicholas Frayling.

Behind the memorial are a number of memorial trees and smaller plaques. 

Some interesting notes:

• The original memorial is still at the NMA, the plaque is on the centre stone of the current memorial and all the remains of the original structure were incorporated into the footing and base of the new memorial.

• Derek Heaps, who, at the time of his death, was the longest serving BNTVA official, conducted his final duty for the BNTVA before he passed away by visiting the quarry and selecting the centre stone for the new memorial.

• BNTVA Chairman, Nigel Heaps attended the memorial at the NMA every NAVAD from its inception until his retirement. He would greet visitors during the morning and the NMA tour trains would pull up at the memorial so he could answer questions from visitors.

• The new memorial is made from Ancaster Stone quarried around Ancaster, Lincolnshire. As well as being used for the church at Ancaster there have also been many great works of architecture constructed from Ancaster stone including; Wollaton Hall, Belton House, Harlaxton Manor, Mentmore Towers, St Pancras Station, Norwich Cathedral and St Johns College, Cambridge. It has also been used for sculptures by Barbara Hepworth and Henry Moore.
  

A brief history of the National Memorial Arboretum (abridged wikipedia).