War Graves Week: MP Sir Mike Penning urges residents to discover war heritage in the area

Sir Mike Penning is encouraging residents to discover local World War history to commemorate War Graves Week.

The week is an initiative from the Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) which runs from May 21 to 28 May.

War Graves Week helps local people to come together and learn about the stories of those commemorated by the

CWGC and the skills, dedication and expertise of those CWGC staff who work to keep their memory alive.

Sir Mike said: “I’d encourage all my constituents to embrace War Graves Week. It’s a fantastic opportunity to reconnect with our local history and learn about the courageous ordinary people from our community who made the ultimate sacrifice for our freedom."

He added: “Behind every name on a war grave or memorial in Dacorum is a human story waiting to be discovered and War Graves Week is the perfect opportunity to do just that.”

There are 37 casualties from both World Wars in Hemel Hempstead Cemetery on Heath Lane which the public can visit.

The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) honours and cares for the men and women of the Commonwealth forces who died in the First and Second World Wars, making sure that they will never be forgotten.

Funded by six Member Governments, CWGC’s work began with building, and now maintaining, cemeteries at 23,000 locations all over the world.