New plaque honours Bognor Regis postal workers who lost their lives during World War Two

The original plaque was lost when the Post Office moved out of what is now the Royal Mail delivery office on high street.

When Royal Mail moved in and refurbishment work started, the plaque was misplaced.

“We were all a bit annoyed about it,” said Tony Dixon, a postman with five and a half years’ experience, “so, some of the guys had a whip round and we got a new one put up.”

Foremost among them was Keith Blunden, Bognor’s longest serving postman with fifty years of service under his belt. Mr Blunden was the driving force behind the replacement effort, urging post-officers to donate and, eventually, commissioning and collecting the plaque itself. He also had a photo of the original plaque on his phone, which helped ensure the commission was as accurate as possible.

The newly refurbished plaque now has pride of place in the public entrance to the caller’s office. Mr Dixon said it felt like a fitting tribute to the troops, and that it was important to remember their sacrifice.

“I think most people felt that way when the plaque went missing- we were generally quite annoyed and wondered what the hell had happened to it,” he said

“So yes, I think there’s still a massive amount of feeling to remember these people who gave their lives.”