BECAUSE of the terrible loss of life, we tend to think most British soldiers who fought in the Great War perished on the Western Front. However, the reality is nine out of ten survived and Private George Sykes was one of them.

George signed up in 1915 and returned to York when the conflict was over, but since then his Victory Medal has been missing. Now it is back with George’s family, thanks to some sterling research by York Cemetery volunteers Janet Lea and Caroline Kennedy.

Mementoes such as this are hugely important to relatives. We say well done to Janet and Caroline.