Grieving parents hit out at Stockton Council (From The Northern Echo)

Grieving parents hit out at Stockton Council

6:00am Friday 13th November 2009

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THE parents of a North-East war hero say they have been told they cannot put up a memorial bench in tribute to him because there are already too many at the chosen place.

Sandra and Alan Johnson told of their anger after Stockton Borough Council ruled there was no space in the High Street to commemorate their son, Sergeant Lee Johnson, who was killed in Afghanistan.

The couple wanted the bench to be in a prominent spot near the parish church where Lee’s packed funeral was held.

A fundraising event at the Thornaby Ex-Servicemen’s Club tonight is expected to raise several hundred pounds – more than covering the cost of a commemorative bench.

Mrs Johnson said: “I was shocked, because I think it is appalling.

It would mean a lot to me and his dad to have the bench on the High Street and make us even more proud of Lee.”

Last night, Stockton South MP Dari Taylor urged the council to think again, saying: “Lee is a war hero who gave his life for Great Britain. I would not expect his family to be told there is no space.”

The council said it supported putting a bench in the Parish Gardens, near the High Street.

Spokesman Richard Bradley said: “As far as we are concerned, the family would like the bench in the Parish Gardens and that is what we are trying to do.”

The dispute comes almost two years after Sgt Johnson, 33, was killed when an explosion hit his vehicle, near Musa Qala, in Helmand province. He was serving with the 2nd Battalion The Yorkshire Regiment. A member of a team training the Afghan National Army, he was engaged to marry Lisa McIntosh and had a teenage son, Ashley, and twoyear- old daughter, Lilly Rose.

A few days later, Gordon Brown led tributes to him in the Commons.

Early last week, Mrs Johnson, of Bishopton Court, Stockton, and her daughter and niece, met Mr Bradley at the town hall to discuss the plan for a commemorative bench.

Mrs Johnson said: “We said we wanted the bench to be on the High Street, near the parish church, but he said we could not do that because it was already full of benches.

“Lee had a lot of mates and we feel that more people will see and use the bench if it is put up there.

“There are also CCTV cameras, to protect against vandalism.

“We were told we could put a plaque on a bench that is already there, but Lee was a local hero – mentioned in despatches – and that is not what we want.”

But Mr Bradley disputed Mrs Johnson’s recollection of the meeting, saying: “The family’s preference is for the bench to be inside the Parish Gardens, near the war memorial.”

He said the decision to allow the bench in the gardens would lie with the church, and that the council would submit the application when the family decided on the wording of the plaque.

However, Mr Bradley accepted that the council was willing to discuss the use of an existing bench on the High Street for a plaque.

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