THE Duke of Gloucester will visit Bolton for a rededication ceremony at a restored war memorial.

Confirmation of his visit follows months of campaigning by councillors for a member of the Royal Family to attend the ceremony.

Buckingham Palace said the 51 year old Duke is due to arrive in the town on April 27 as part of a wider tour of the Greater Manchester region.

The Duke, grandson of George V and a first cousin to the Queen, will attend the rededication at the war memorial in Farnworth Park.

He will also officially open Queensbridge Primary School, in St Germain Street, Farnworth, which opened following a merger between Queen Street Primary School and Bridgewater Nursery in April last year.

Farnworth councillor Noel Spencer said: "This is what we've been asking for and we are delighted that the Duke of Gloucester will be visiting. It will be a great boost for the people of Farnworth, for the people involved with the school and a fitting tribute to those veterans who lost their lives serving their country."

A spokesman for Buckingham Palace said: "The Duke of Gloucester will be visiting Bolton as part of his tour of Greater Manchester."

A programme of events is being drawn up including suggestions of performing bands and some veterans, who attended Queen Street Primary School when they were younger, to revisit their old school.

The war memorial suffered repeated vandal attacks last year, which saw wooden plaques bearing the names of Farnworth's dead being damaged.

The war memorial was further damaged in July when yobs sprayed graffiti and smashed the stonework with hammers.

The Duke of Gloucester last visited Farnworth in April, 2003, when he opened the Age Concern building in Queen Street.