Woman who fled Bilbao during civil war returns to Brampton

Carmen Cid-Santibañez, now Eckersley, unveiled the plaque in Brampton in Cumbria

A plaque has been unveiled to honour dozens of children who were relocated to a village during the Spanish Civil War.

About 100 "Basque children" were resettled inside a workhouse in Brampton, Cumbria, in April 1938.

They were among 4,000 minors, who sailed to safety on the SS Habana, and rehomed with families across the UK.

Carmen Eckersley, formerly Cid-Santibañez, has since returned to the village as a "token of thanks".

Along with her siblings, Edurne and Luis, she had stayed at the workhouse, which had been transformed into accommodation.

At the time, volunteers had worked tirelessly to renovate the building into a place of safety, and it has since been demolished.

The former Brampton workhouse, which has since been demolished

Ms Eckersley, aged seven at the time, stayed there until she was placed into foster care by Carlisle's Alford family, while her siblings were moved to Glasgow.

They had fled Deusto, Bilbao, to escape unrest, which took place between 1936 and 1939. Most of the 4,000 children eventually returned to Spain.

On Saturday, a ceremony was held at The Howards Arms Hotel, Brampton, to formally recognise the village's role in the civil war.

Malcolm Little, who is married to Ms Eckersley's daughter, Jane Pilar-Little, said the ceremony had evoked interest among locals.

The plaque will eventually be moved into a more permanent home

"They were a lot of people from Brampton, all were quite encouraged", he said.

"A lady came in (to the ceremony) and said she'd never heard of this. It's all new to me".

The plaque will eventually be relocated to a more permanent home after being unveiled at the hotel, Mr Little said.

He added: "Carmen said she was eternally grateful to everyone from Brampton who took these kids in."