Plans to honour soldiers killed during the Second World War on a memorial at a Dudley church have been delayed after hitting a snag in the legal process.

A new plaque on the monument at St Augustine of Hippo’s Church in Holly Hall was set to be unveiled next weekend, to coincide with the 70th anniversary of the war’s start. But Valerie Worwood, a member of a group which has been campaigning for the 23 soldiers from the Holly Hall area to be honoured, says the processes required by church law had not been completed in time.

Mrs Worwood, who has researched the life story of each of the men who will be named on the memorial, says the church will instead host a three-day exhibition focusing on the area’s role in the war.

Among those named on the plaque will be John Torode, who settled in Dudley after fleeing Guernsey on the last boat out as Hitler’s troops seized the island, as well as many others born and bred in the area.

The project was the brainchild of worshipper Jim Grainger, aged 73, who said it was time that the church’s memorial was updated to commemorate those who died in the Second as well as the First World War.

“I have been going to the church all my life and it has always been a bugbear of mine that it’s only First World War names mentioned on the memorial,” he said.

The plaque was due to have been dedicated at a special service at 11am on September 6, and this will go ahead as planned to commemorate the role the area played in the war.

The exhibition will feature photographs of the servicemen killed, and the stories of their exploits.

Mrs Worwood said she was disappointed the dedication had been delayed, but said the extra names would be added as soon as the processes had been completed.

She said she hoped the plaque would be in place ready for the Remembrance Day service in November.