The Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) awarded £9,200 to the Friends of Ripon Spa Gardens to restore and protect the war memorial and another Grade II listed structure at the site - a statue of the First Marquess of Ripon. The project, which was managed by the council, included cleaning, re-pointing, re-patination and the application of protective wax coatings of both structures. The Friends Group are also producing a special leaflet about the war memorial so that everyone in the local community has a better understanding of this historic structure and its significance.

The service, carried out by The Very Rev Keith Michael Jukes, Dean of Ripon, saw the War Memorial rededicated to honour those who gave their lives in the First and Second World Wars.

Trish McLaughlin, Harrogate Borough Council's Parks Development Manager, said: "The city is also proud of the men and women who gave their lives in the two world wars. The service was extremely well attended and people laid wreaths before and after it had taken place. This surely demonstrates that people value and respect our war memorials and want their relevance to continue. The grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund was vital for the successful outcome of this project. And to make sure that the memorials historical importance is recognised, we plan to produce an education leaflet that will be available to all organisations and through our Tourist Information Centres as well as on our website and those of partner organisations such as the local civic society. This will make sure that others can learn about them in the future."

The event saw representatives of the Royal British Legion, Royal Engineers Association, and the Royal Airforce Association bear their standards, and was also attended by The Worshipful Mayor of the Borough of Harrogate, the Rt Workshipful Mayor of the City of Ripon, and Fiona Spiers, Head of the Heritage Lottery Fund for the Yorkshire and the Humber region.