'Paws for remembrance' among National Memorial Arboretum's 200 events for 2016

Britain's National Memorial Arboretum will host more than 200 events in 2016, including a one-day "Paws for Remembrance" walk aimed specifically at dog owners.

As well as staging its ninth annual Ride to the Wall in October for bikerswishing to pay their respects at the national Armed Forces Memorial, the arboretum is hoping to attract dog walkers to the 150-acre site on February 14.

Each October tens of thousands of bikers gather at the National Memorial Arboretum to pay tribute the Armed Forces. Credit: ITV News Central

Exact details of the new event have yet to be finalised by officials at thearboretum in Alrewas, Staffordshire, which receives around 300,000 visitors each year.

Arboretum spokesman Andrew Baud said:

The free-to-enter arboretum, which opened in 2001, is part of the Royal BritishLegion and is home to more than 300 separate memorials, including the Armed Forces Memorial.

The arboretum is home to more than 300 separate memorials. Credit: ITV News Central
Poppy Wreaths lie within the Armed Forces Memorial. Credit: PA

The portland stone monument, bearing the names of more than 16,000 servicemen and women killed in the line of duty, was officially dedicated in the presence of the Queen in 2007.

The names of those killed while serving in the UK armed forces during 2015 will be dedicated at a ceremony planned for the autumn.

Other events being held this year include services to mark Holocaust MemorialDay and a commemoration in May marking the 100th anniversary of start of the Battle of Jutland during the First World War.