Help Royal British Legion paint Skegness red for this year's Poppy Appeal

The branch wants everyone to start knitting or creating waterproof poppies to make a stunning central display at a location to be confirmed.

Remembrance around November 11 has always been an important date on the calendar in Skegness, with a parade attracting hundreds of veterans, local groups, organisations and schools, as well as civic guests and councillors.

Even during lockdown when there was no parade, local Skegness councillors funded the painting a giant poppy in Tower Gardens for everyone to enjoy while on their daily walks.

This year, however, the local branch want to go even further.

Louise Clarkson, secretary of the Skegness branch of the Royal British Legion, said: “It’s important we continue to remember our veterans but it isn’t just about World War 1 and the Second World War.

"Many of us today have lost loved ones in conflict or know someone who continues to serve.

"This year we want to do something special for them, though.

"We are hoping to have a community project where members of the public make poppies for us.

"The poppies can be made in any medium, whether that’s knitted like the ones being done by St Clement’s ladies, or like the ones being produced by the Derbyshire Children’s Holiday Centre who are painting stones.

" Skegness Grammar School are using the case of two litre bottles.

“They also need to be waterpoof so if they are made of paper they would need to be laminated.

"We need hundreds of them by the end of September.

"We have plans to have a display of all of these poppies during the Poppy Appeal period and Remembrance Day.

"We have an idea where we would like that to be but we can’t share it at the moment but it is a community project and it will be somewhere very dramatic.

"We hope what we achieve will be Lincolnshire’s finest this year as a demonstration of Remembrance.”

A collection box for completed poppies has already been placed in the Hildreds Centre in Skegness. They can also be dropped at M Richards Family Funeral Service in Lincoln Road, the RBL headquarters at the New Park Club in Scarbrough Avenue and the Ex-Servicemen’s Club on the seafront.

New members are also welcome at the Skegness branch, who meet at the New Park Club every Monday at 7.30pm.