VETERANS campaigning for a memorial to a military regiment have seen a miniature version of the statue.

They hope a larger-than-life-sized bronze statue of a Durham Light Infantry bugler will be unveiled at the National Memorial Arboretum, in Staffordshire, next year, followed by a replica in Durham City.

After an appeal backed by The Northern Echo, they are now only £3,000 short of their £75,000 fundraising target to pay for the Staffordshire statue.

Making a statue for a yet-to-be-decided location in Durham could cost £9,000.

A miniature of the statue was presented to a meeting at the DLI Museum, in Durham City, on Saturday and approved, meaning sculptor Alan Beattie Herriot can begin work on the real thing.

Appeal co-ordinator Colonel Arthur Charlton said: “Everybody was perfectly happy with the statue.

“Hopefully, things will start moving now. We are all systems go.”

The statue is based on a photograph of Cadet Colour- Serjeant Brandon Mulvey.

The 18-year-old, from Chester-le- Street, who is the Lord Lieutenant’s Cadet for County Durham, posed in original Korean War uniform for the statue. Col Charlton said Brandon was delighted at the prospect of being immortalised in bronze.

The appeal was launched after two former DLI soldiers, Keith Straughier and Richard Softley, discovered their regiment was not honoured at the arboretum.

Col Charlton said: “People have responded very well to the appeal. We did not know how it was going to go. We thought it was going to be a real uphill struggle. Now we just need a push to get over the finishing line.”

The sculpture will be cast at a foundry in Edinburgh by the end of the year and be ready for unveiling by April.

Donations for the appeal, made payable to the Regimental and Chattels Charity of the former DLI, should be sent to DLI Memorial Appeal, The Rifles Office, Elvet Waterside Durham, DH1 3BW.