Plans for a D-Day memorial have taken a step forward with Gosport's council agreeing use of the land it will be installed on.

A war memorial garden will be created in Stokes Bay if fundraising hits the £30,000 target needed by the D-Day Fellowship

Gosport Borough Council has now agreed a licence for it to use near Stokes Bay Sailing Club.

The semi-circular garden, next to the promenade, will offer a place for reflection and remembrance for local residents and visitors.

It will be the site of a new granite D-Day memorial stone and the existing Mulberry Harbours stone, a Gosport Borough Council report said. 

The D-Day memorial garden, facing the sea, will commemorate the 80th anniversary of British and Allied troops leaving Stokes Bay as part of Operation Overlord to take part in the D-Day landings in Normandy in June 1944.

Jilly and David Salvat from the D-Day Fellowship said the group took over fundraising the project, which needed £30,000 from local businesses and the community when Gosport Borough Council stepped back from supporting the scheme in 2022/23. 

Gosport borough and Hampshire county councils have provided £5,000 each to the project via community grants schemes. 

Councillor Zoe Huggins (Con, Alverstoke) said: “The D-Day Memorial at Stokes Bay moves closer to reality – a testament to community dedication and a lasting legacy for all who served.”