New roads in Hastings may be named after the town’s heroes in the First World War.
A motion to add to the list of possible street names those who served the United Kingdom in the war and were awarded a gallantry medal for their actions, and others who made a contribution during those years, has just been passed unanimously by Hastings Borough Council.
The motion was proposed by Councillor Lee Clark. He said: “When many of us attended the opening of the Hastings Remembers event at the museum back in the summer it struck me at how many of today’s norms and world views were shaped by the tragic events of 1914-1918.
“As I looked at the exhibits and then heard the Mayor Bruce Dowling talk about his uncle and his experience, both during and after the war, it struck me that all across our town are families who could tell a story about a loved one who never came home, a loved one who returned a different person, a loved one who did something out of the ordinary.
“We have roads named after the big chiefs of the Second World War, Churchill Avenue in Ore for example, and in Hollington we have a cluster of roads named after former councillors. But no road names remember those ordinary people who gave their lives in the service of our nation.
“This motion is about addressing a historical wrong, addressing the fact that Hastings’ own are not remembered after their death.
“I have a personal interest in this motion, although I am sure that my interest would have been no less personal even if I had not known about my great-grandmother’s brother, William Alfred Belsey.
“The second oldest of five, he had an older brother who died in Gallipoli, and another brother who died from his wounds in 1923 at Hellingly Hospital.
“This motion also recognises those who did not serve in a combat role.”