ARMISTICE 100: Honour for Belford war project volunteers

The Belford, a Rural Area at War project, was made possible by two Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) grants over five years, amounting in total to £12,000.

They enabled Belford Museum to put on five successive exhibitions.

Recognising the huge contribution the HLF and its First World War projects have made to the centenary commemorations, the Department for Digital, Media and Sport invited the fund to nominate people to attend the National Service of Thanksgiving.

As a result, more than 300 people who have been involved with HLF-funded projects across the UK, included representatives from Belford, are due to attend the service at Westminster. Members of the Royal family, and religious and political leaders are also expected to attend.

The HLF has invested £97million in 2,200 First World War centenary projects.

The Belford work reflected the impact of the war on the people of the area and created a permanent record of the displays in book form.

Its aims included to research the war experiences of all known local men and women who participated in the war, and to make that information available in the museum; to improve the display facilities for the collection of artefacts; and to publish a book of Letters From The Front reflecting the experiences of the men from the North East and the Borders; and over three years to mount a monthly programme of lectures and films on aspects of life during the First Word War.