Youngsters launch campaign for new mining banner

Jack Pringle (centre) wants to make a new banner for his village

A 24-year-old has launched a campaign to produce a new mining banner for his village.

Jack Pringle, from Langley Park, County Durham, said he and his friends had been inspired after going to the Durham Miners' Gala earlier this year and realising that their village was not represented.

"We were saddened by the fact that even though our village played a crucial part in mining history… it wasn't recognised in this great event," he said.

He said that he believed his village was not represented because its banner has been beyond repair for several years.

A postcard of an old Langley Park miners' banner

Next year is the 50th anniversary of the closure of Langley Park's pits, he said, and so this felt like a good time to launch a campaign to make a new village banner.

Mr Pringle said he had lived in the village for the majority of his life and had many family members who had worked in its colliery.

He said going to Miners' Gala had given him a "sense of pride" for the local history and the miners' "progressive solidarity".

His group, the Langley Park Miners' Banner Campaign, has received a quote of about £12,000 to produce a new banner for the village.

The group is planning to hold a meeting for the local community on 14 November about the campaign.

It hopes to raise the money in part using fundraising events which "connect the village back to its industrial history", he said.