Parachute Regiment & Airborne Forces Memorial
The Parachute Regimental Association and the Council of The Parachute Regiment jointly wish to establish a Memorial to the soldiers of the Regiment and associated Airborne units, who have fought together since the inception of Airborne Forces in 1940. The unveiling is planned for summer 2012.
Our appeal target is £230,000. Donations, which may be GiftAided if appropriate, should be sent to Memorial Appeal, RHQ PARA, Merville Barracks, Colchester CO2 7UT. Or you can donate online.
Cheques should be made out to The Parachute Regiment Charity, and will be held in a designated fund for the Memorial. Please mark clearly that this is your wish. All donations and pledges are gratefully acknowledged here.
Watch this BFBS video news item about the memorial.
Dedication Ceremony – 13 July
Our memorial will be formally dedicated in a ceremony at the National Memorial Arboretum (NMA), Croxall Road, Alrewas, Staffordshire, DE13 7AR on Friday July 13th at 1100hrs.
The NMA is open to the public free of charge and the Airborne community is invited to attend on the day. Directions to the NMA and other details can be found here at the NMA website.
If you are planning to attend, please note that this will be a popular occasion. Traffic may be congested and public parking will be in an overspill car park which is a short walk away, not the main NMA car park. You should therefore allow sufficient time for your journey.
Please note also that much of the NMA site is grassed, but not paved; visitors should wear suitable footwear if weather conditions are unfavourable.
Refreshments will be available from the NMA’s cafe. For security reasons, access to Regimental hospitality areas will be by ticketed invitation only.
The National Memorial Arboretum (NMA) at Alrewas in Staffordshire is the UK’s Centre of Remembrance and site of the Armed Forces Memorial to those who have died since 1948.
The site attracts 300,000 visitors annually and has become the site of choice for many commemorative monuments to individual arms, regiments and units.
There is no existing national memorial and the NMA is the most appropriate and nationally accessible location for an organisation that has always recruited nationally and has no county allegiance or home.
It will be an important memorial and shrine for all in our wider community, and its role in supporting bereaved families is paramount, especially in light of the continued current conflict.
The site is in view of the main Armed Forces Memorial, at the junction of tree-lined avenues, and appropriate for both private remembrance as well as Regimental and Association occasions.
Design and construction will be of the highest quality. Two bronze statues will be linked in one overall composition with pedestals and paving in Portland Stone: a standing paratrooper in jump order for the Regiment itself and Bellerophon astride Pegasus, the traditional badge worn to denote Airborne Forces.
Our sculptors chosen in a four-way competition are Mark Jackson and Charlie Langton. Their work may be seen at their websites at www.jackoart.com and www.charlielangtonart.com
