FORGOTTEN heroes of the Second World War will have their names added to the New Barnet war memorial thanks to the hard work of one campaigner.

Catherine Loveday, 72, of Lullington Garth, Woodside Park, researched and raised more than £6,000 needed to honour 136 men who died while serving in the armed forces.

After combing through old newspaper articles she contacted relatives of the causalities to see if they would contribute to the project.

Mrs Loveday said: “These guys gave everything for our freedom and liberty. The memorial says they should never be forgotten, but these people have been.

“Somebody has got to fight for them, somebody has to fight for justice. Goodness knows what this country would have been like if we had been overrun.”

The memorial currently lists fallen soldiers of the First World War, including Mrs Loveday's grandfather Frederick Ernest Cox, which has left little room for more names.

Therefore, a new separate slab, made of the same Portland limestone as the obelisk in Station Approach, will be laid during a rededication service in April.

Mrs Loveday says her work was originally inspired by the lack of a proper burial or tribute for her father, Stanley Frederick Chapman, who died in the Battle of the Atlantic in 1941.

In 1995 she managed to have his name scribed onto the East Barnet memorial, and in July 2010 she successfully campaigned for a further 45 names to be added.

Mrs Loveday said: “My mother never had a place to go and grieve for my father. I think it is so important for people to have a place where they can pay their respects.”

The Woodside Park pensioner will be joined by members of the British Legion, Salvation Army and various religious leaders for a special rededication service on Sunday, April 10, at 10.30am.

Mrs Loveday is considering a similar campaign in Edgware for her next project.