Lytham War Memorial and Garden is situated at the eastern end of Lytham’s main shopping street, adjacent to Lytham’s Piazza. The site sits in between Market Square and Hastings Place.
Lytham Memorial is one of three listed War Memorials within the Borough of Fylde.
The memorial itself is housed within formal gardens. In summary the Gardens offers the following features:
- Formal Gardens
- Trees
- Floral displays
- Tranquil area to sit or picnic
- War Memorial
- Furniture
History of the site
The triangle of land where the War Memorial Gardens now lie have been a part of the historic landscape of Lytham from at least the early 19th Century.
The mid 19th Century saw the introduction on the site of the market hall, built in 1848
Towards the end of the 19th Century saw the introduction of a Memorial Drinking Fountain to the site. The fountain was erected c. 1882 to commemorate John Talbot Clifton of Lytham Hall.
The Memorial Fountain remained a feature of the Gardens until 1920, when it was moved to Station Square to make way for the War Memorial. The War Memorial was erected to commemorate those lost in the First World War.
The Memorial has since been altered to Commemorate those lost in the Second World War to present day. Both the Water Fountain and War Memorial are grade II listed.
Restoration Programme
In 2007 the memorial and gardens benefited from a £55,000 restoration scheme funded by Fylde Borough Council. The project was completed in partnership with Lytham in Bloom who were integral in the gaining of the capital funds for the project and in gauging the local community’s desires for the site.
The works included in the scheme involved the resurfacing and surface dressing of the existing footpaths, de-cluttering the landscape in terms of inappropriate signage, furniture, bollards and the introduction of a designed and co-ordinated approach to furniture, signage, etc. The site has also seen the re-instalment of a perimeter fence which mirrors the original fence that had previously been removed.
The war memorial was cleaned and up lit and the wording on the granite relief panels were repointed with a lime mortar to restore them to their original spender. This work was done by John Rimmer, a local expert in historic stone restoration.
The horticultural improvements included the re-turfing of the whole site as well as arboricultural works. The site’s lawns were stripped and re-laid by local turf specialist Danvic Turf to a high specification. The site had kept its floral displays.
Horticulture
Within the Gardens there is a range of seasonal bedding displays, both containerised and in the ground. The seasonal bedding displays include spring and summer displays of plants and bulbs. The seasonal borders are supplemented with floral displays in containers, hanging baskets and floral towers.
Lytham War Memorial Gardens is one of the main horticultural features and sites in Lytham’s North West in Bloom submission.
In 2012 the town received an international award for Communities in Bloom award in competition with towns from across the globe; the site also received a North West in Bloom award for a best feature in a public space.
In 2013 Lytham won the prestigious Champion of Champions at the Internationals for Britain in Bloom.
Lytham was nominated again for Britain in Bloom Champion of Champions for 2016 and took Gold at the Awards ceremony held in Birmingham.
The certificates for the garden’s successes are shown in the garden’s notice board.
Lytham in Bloom Trust
The Lytham in Bloom Trust, apart from their routine of gardening work, are always keen to consider other attractions for the Gardens to widen their popularity. The sponsorship scheme of the furniture and provision of commemorative plaques, are evidence of their interest. As previously described, the Gardens have undergone a full restoration. The members of Lytham in Bloom Trust were instrumental in pushing the Gardens up the political agenda enough to successfully secure the £55,000 of internal funds from the Council, and raised another £14,000 through various fundraising projects.
