Families of the Totnes heroes who gave their lives for their country are to be consulted over possible plans to shift the town’s war memorial to a new site.

A special meeting is being held at the end of the month to outline just how the 97-year-old town memorial could be repositioned in the St Mary’s churchyard.

Relatives of those named on the memorial are being invited to attend, along with the relatives of anyone who has died for their country, to comment on the proposals aimed at creating a new ‘Place to Remember’ in the town.

The possibility of shifting the war memorial was one of the most controversial proposals to come out of an initial consultation exercise looking at transforming the space around St Mary’s Church into a heritage site of national importance. Mayor Rosie Adams, who will be chairing the meeting due to go ahead at the Guildhall at 2.30pm on Tuesday, January 30, said: “None of this can happen without the fullest consultation. There is a particular sensitivity in such proposals for the relatives of war dead, for whom this may effectively be a ‘last resting place’ for loved ones.

“The partnership [behind the proposal] has therefore decided to hold a special consultative meeting for the relatives of anyone who has died for their country in armed conflict and for any organisation which represents the casualties of war.

“The wider public will have the opportunity to give their opinion at the open consultation events in February and March.”

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The joint project involves the Totnes Trust, the Totnes Parochial Church Council and the town council.

A trust spokesman said: “The war memorial as erected in 1921, following public subscription organised by the town council.

“There was a long debate about where to put it, with several sites around the town being considered, but in the end it was located in St Mary’s churchyard in the only publicly visible position that could be found at the time – a restricted area in the middle of the path into the graveyard. The result has been a difficult, limited space around the memorial for large gatherings and a little sense of place dedicated respectfully to Remembrance.

“However the partnership’s project to improve the area around the church has provided an opportunity to remedy this.”

The partnership proposal is to move the memorial to the other side of the church porch, add more seating and to add the names of 27 war casualties who appear to have been missed off. The war memorial currently holds the names of those who died in the First and Second World Wars. The partnership is also suggesting that anyone from the town who has died in subsequent armed conflicts could also be included.

The partnership proposals are looking at carrying out major improvements to St Mary’s Church to make it more community friendly while creating a better integrated heritage site in the heart of the Totnes that will include the historic buildings in the High Street, the square outside the parish church, the graveyard, green space, Ramparts Walk and the Guildhall.