Wigan Airmen Honoured With New Memorial Bench 2026

Key Points

• The memorial seat for Wigan airmen has taken the place of another old seat in honor of two local men who lost their lives in the Second World War.
• The memorial serves in the memory of two Wigan airmen whose contribution and sacrifice during the war is commemorated by the local community.
• It is mentioned that an allotment team from the area played a part in replacing the old memorial seat.
• Councilor Chris Ready and a former councilor, Ron seem to have played a role in unveiling the new memorial.
• This development has helped retain the memory of the two airmen, at the same time creating a new point of attraction for the community.
• The publication date of the report is 2026.

Wigan (Manchester Mirror) September 26, 2026 – A new memorial bench has been installed in Wigan to honour two local airmen who died during the Second World War, replacing an older bench that had served as a place of remembrance for the war heroes.

The replacement was carried out with help from a local allotment team, according to a report published by Wigan Today. The report’s headline identifies the project as a community effort involving an old memorial bench for Wigan airmen and an allotment team.

The development gives residents a renewed place to remember the two men and reflects the continuing role of local groups in preserving wartime memorials. It also shows how commemorative projects can be maintained through cooperation between community volunteers and local representatives.

Wigan Today reported that Coun Chris Ready and former councillor Ron were pictured in connection with the new memorial. The image caption supplied with the article identifies them as part of the group associated with the replacement bench.

Why was the Wigan memorial bench replaced?

The original bench had been dedicated to two Wigan airmen who died during the Second World War. Over time, the memorial seat required replacement, creating a need to ensure that the tribute remained available to the public.

Rather than allowing the memorial to disappear, members of a local allotment team helped provide a new bench. Their involvement ensured that the remembrance continued in a practical form while retaining its connection to the surrounding community.

The available report information does not state when the former bench was installed, how long it had been in place or the precise condition that led to its replacement. It also does not identify the specific materials, design or inscription used on the new seat.

Who is being remembered by the new bench?

The memorial is dedicated to two airmen from Wigan who died during the Second World War. Their service is the central reason for the bench, which provides a permanent public reminder of the human cost of the conflict.

The information available from the supplied Wigan Today article does not include the men’s full names or explain whether they served in the Royal Air Force, another air force or a related wartime aviation role. It also does not provide their ranks, squadrons, aircraft, missions or dates of death.

Those details should not be inferred from the headline or photograph caption. The verified information is limited to the fact that the memorial commemorates two Wigan airmen who died during the Second World War.

How did the allotment team support the memorial project?

The allotment team played a direct role in replacing the old bench. Its participation demonstrates how community organisations can contribute to local heritage projects beyond their usual activities.

Allotment groups often operate as volunteer-led organisations rooted in a particular neighbourhood. In this case, the group’s work helped maintain a memorial that serves residents, visitors and families with a connection to Wigan.

The available source does not specify whether the team funded the bench, built it, installed it or helped organise the project. It therefore cannot be confirmed which part of the replacement process was completed by the allotment members.

What is clear is that the new memorial was associated with the team’s work and that its contribution was significant enough to feature in the report about the replacement.

What role did local representatives play?

Coun Chris Ready and former councillor Ron were linked to the new memorial in the photograph accompanying the Wigan Today report. Their presence indicates civic recognition of the tribute and the community effort behind it.

The supplied material does not include direct quotations from either representative. It also does not establish whether either man initiated the project, helped secure funding, attended a formal unveiling or represented a particular council committee.

Attribution is therefore important. The available article information supports the statement that they were pictured in connection with the new bench, but it does not support additional claims about their individual responsibilities.

The involvement of current and former local representatives nevertheless underlines the connection between the memorial and Wigan’s civic life. The bench is both a tribute to wartime service and a visible part of the community landscape.

Why do local memorials remain important?

A memorial bench can serve several purposes at the same time. It can provide a place to sit, mark a specific site and preserve the names or memory of people whose lives were connected to the area.

For families and residents, such memorials can make national historical events more personal. The Second World War is often remembered through major battles, military campaigns and national commemorations, but local memorials connect those events to individual communities.

The replacement of the Wigan bench also shows that remembrance depends on ongoing care. Physical memorials can weather, deteriorate or become unsafe, and their survival may depend on residents and community organisations willing to act.

In this case, the new bench keeps the tribute present in everyday public life. People do not need to attend a formal ceremony to encounter it; the memorial can be seen during ordinary visits to the area.

What does the replacement mean for Wigan?

The new bench ensures that the two airmen continue to be remembered within their local community. Its installation also represents a practical example of cooperation between volunteers and local civic figures.

The project is significant because it combines remembrance with community action. The allotment team’s work has not changed the historical facts surrounding the two airmen, but it has helped protect the physical form through which those facts are remembered.

The replacement also avoids a gap in the memorial’s presence. If the old bench had been removed without a successor, residents could have lost a familiar place associated with the two men. The new installation maintains continuity while providing a renewed structure.

The available report does not state whether a formal ceremony took place or whether relatives of the airmen attended. It also does not provide information about future plans for the memorial.

What has Wigan Today reported?

The story was published by Wigan Today under the headline “Old memorial bench for Wigan airmen replaced by allotment team”. The supplied article listing identifies the subject as the replacement of a memorial bench for two Wigan airmen who died during the Second World War.

The accompanying caption refers to Coun Chris Ready and former councillor Ron. Because the full article could not be retrieved from the supplied link, no additional author name, direct quotation, date of publication or detailed account can be independently confirmed here.

Accordingly, the report’s verified points are presented cautiously. No unverified names, quotations, military details or claims about the ceremony have been added.

What is the wider background to the development?

The background to the development is the preservation of a local Second World War memorial dedicated to two Wigan airmen. The original bench had become old and was replaced with help from a local allotment team, allowing the tribute to remain in the community.

The project forms part of the broader tradition of local remembrance in Britain, where benches, plaques, gardens and other public memorials commemorate people connected to a town or neighbourhood. Such memorials are often maintained by councils, community organisations, volunteers or relatives.

In this case, the available source information does not provide the airmen’s names or their full biographies. It is therefore not possible to give a verified account of their units, operations or personal histories without further records from an official memorial register, military archive or a fuller version of the original report.

The known background remains clear: two Wigan airmen died during the Second World War, an older memorial bench was replaced and an allotment team helped ensure that the local tribute continued.

How could the new bench affect the local community?

The new bench is likely to give residents a maintained place for remembrance and reflection. For people connected to the two airmen, it may also provide reassurance that the men’s link with Wigan remains publicly recognised.

The project may encourage further interest in local wartime history, particularly if residents seek information about the men commemorated. Schools, historical societies and community groups could use the memorial as a starting point for researching Wigan’s contribution to the war.

For the allotment team, the project demonstrates a wider civic role and may strengthen its relationship with nearby residents and local representatives. For the council and other community organisations, it provides an example of how modest volunteer-led action can preserve an important public tribute.

The effect will depend partly on the bench’s location, inscription and accessibility, none of which is fully detailed in the available source. On the confirmed information, its main impact is continuity: the memorial remains in place for the community and future generations.