MORE than £17,000 will be spent repairing Cockermouth’s unstable cenotaph, following a grant from the War Memorials Trust.

But the work will not be done until after Armistice Day – meaning scaffolding will surround the structure off Station Road during proceedings.

The scaffolding went up in May. Town mayor David Malloy said: “It will be staying up until November 12. It’s far too dangerous, we had no choice.

“However we plan to incorporate the scaffolding into proceedings, possibly using flags.”

The town council, which owns the war memorial, has appointed specialists to undertake conservation and repair of the memorial’s iconic bronze statue of Victory.

Town clerk Sheila Brown said: “It is in need of urgent repair as a result of the findings of a condition report prepared by conservation architects Lloyd Evans Prichard.

“Cockermouth Council is leading the project which involves the temporary removal of the statue from site for repair and cleaning at the studio of a specialist bronze conservator and the rebuilding of the stone column beneath which supports it.”

The work is expected to be completed in March next year.