BRENTWOOD Borough Council would like to thank staff from Ford Motor Company who swapped their work desks for wheelbarrows and volunteered to tend Lorne Road Cemetery in Warley.

The closed Victorian cemetery has more than 40 scattered war graves and is also the resting place of policemen who were killed on duty. This peaceful and scenic special place in the Borough has been part of a Council four year project to commemorate the 100 year anniversary of World War I.

Around 40 staff members from Ford at Eagle Way in Warley volunteered their two Community Project days at the closed Victorian Lorne Road Cemetery. As many of the graves in the cemetery are war graves of soldiers who were based in the Warley Barracks, there is a real connection with Ford Motor Company which now stands on the site of the old regimental depot and barracks.

Chris Hossack, chairman of the Environment & Housing Management Committee, said: once people visit Lorne Road Cemetery they can feel an attachment to it because it really is a peaceful and scenic place with a lot of history and stories behind the gravestones.

He added: “I would like to thank the staff from Ford for their enthusiasm and hard graft last week and the attention to detail they dedicated over the two days they spent there. Brentwood School has also been involved in this community project and will be volunteering at the cemetery later this month as will some of our staff to carry on the great work started by the Ford volunteers”.

Ford Customer Service Division Director, Carlos Ovilo, added: “The FCSD Team were delighted to be able to spend time working at Lorne Road again this year. We had a great two days getting to know each other better whilst helping to improve this beautiful place for the local community to enjoy”.