New memorial for servicemen and women unveiled

The headstone was unveiled at Maidenbrook Country Park in Taunton

A war memorial to servicemen and women, past and present, has been unveiled.

A headstone has been carved and put in place in Maidenbrook Country Park in Taunton to be used as a place for quiet reflection.

It has been made to replicate the size and style of the thousands of Commonwealth war graves around the country.

Terry Williams from the Somerset Poppy of Honour Memorial Group, who led the project, said: "It's for those who leave, never to return - for those who return, but are never the same."

Servicemen, veterans, fundraisers and cadets attended the unveiling alongside standard bearers, a piper and WW1 reenactors dressed in uniforms who formed a guard of honour.

"You're never the same when you come back from being in the armed forces. You're totally different to the person who joined," Mr Williams said.

"The idea with the Commonwealth war grave headstone is this way we honour those who have given their lives, and those who are currently serving and who have served."

The stone was made to replicate the size and style of Commonwealth war grave headstones

The headstone was crafted by a Taunton stonemason who embedded pennies with the date of a conflict into it.

Poppy seeds have also been planted so that they will eventually grow from the base of the stone.