A REPLACEMENT Normandy Memorial should be in place within months.

The memorial, between The Sands and the River Tyne, was targeted by vandals 12 months ago, with fears that the metal sphere, which sits on top of a large plinth, had been stolen.

The sphere was recovered but found to be damaged and now a replacement could be ready to be put in its place.

Charles Ingle, who, along with his late mum Vera, was instrumental in seeing the tribute created in 2004 to mark the 60th anniversary of the Normandy Landings, was happy to see progress being made.

He paid tribute to East Lothian Council for their efforts in sourcing a replacement, which will take the form of a cast iron urn.

The former East Lothian councillor and Haddington and District community councillor said: “I met with Andrew Hogarth, from East Lothian Council, and he along with other people have been exceptionally helpful.

“The local authority are paying for the replacement and putting it in place on top of the plinth.”

No exact date has been set yet for the urn to be put in place, although it is hoped it will be done before the end of the year.

A spokeswoman for East Lothian Council said: “The whole concept of the community garden was to enable the council and the local community to work in partnership and improve the general surroundings of Haddington.

“We have been working with a number of community groups to decide on a replacement for the armillary sphere and the urn is something that we all feel will become an iconic part of the area.

“Adding this feature simply takes us another step towards finishing the garden.”

The Normandy Landings, codenamed Operation Neptune, took place on June 6, 1944.

Volunteers, including community councillors and gala organisers, raised thousands to fund the creation of a memorial garden and the erection of the sphere-shaped piece on the site of the former bowling green to the rear of the former Peter Potter Gallery.

The memorial was previously damaged in the summer of 2009.