Railings stolen from Cenotaph

The Cenotaph is a Grade II listed monument

Three bronze railings worth thousands of pounds have been stolen from around a Lancashire Cenotaph.

The railings, which surround the monument on Preston Flag Market, were taken by thieves sometime last week.

The city council and police are going through CCTV footage to see if the vandals were caught on camera.

Council leader, Councillor Ken Hudson, said it was "a disgraceful act of theft" at such an important and historic monument.

"The cenotaph is a historic monument that is very important to the people of Preston, particularly those who fought or lost relatives in World Wars I, II and other conflicts of the past century," he said.

"The railings are grouped into fairly large heavy panels and are securely fastened into place, so the thieves have gone to great lengths to remove them."

'Former glory'

The council is appealing to anyone who may have seen the thieves take the railings, or owners of scrap metal yards who may have been approached by them.

Councillor Hudson added: "We will work hard to repair the damage and restore the cenotaph to its former glory as soon as possible."

The cenotaph is a Grade II listed monument, so any replacement railings will have to be carefully crafted by a specialised bronze forger to fit in with the original design.

Anyone with information as to who may have stolen the railings is being urged to contact police in Preston.