Hospital armed forces group remembers heroes on VJ Day

Armed Forces veterans who now work at Leighton Hospital have laid a wreath at Crewe’s Burma Campaign memorial to mark the 80th anniversary of VJ Day.

Members of Mid Cheshire Hospitals’ Veterans Awareness Group represented the Trust during the event at Queen’s Park on Friday, 15th August.

Along with staff from the Trust, they joined dignitaries including Lady Redmond the Lord Lieutenant of Cheshire, representatives of Crewe’s Royal British Legion, and the Friends of Queen’s Park.

The group met near the café and marched to the park’s memorial before taking part in a service of remembrance and joining a national two-minute silence.

VJ Day (Victory over Japan Day) marks Imperial Japan’s surrender on 15th August 1945, which ended the Second World War. It honours the hundreds of thousands who served in the Far East and the more than 100,000 Allied troops who died.

Joanne Leese, who served in the Women’s Royal Air Force (WRAF) and is now Volunteer Veteran Lead at Mid Cheshire Hospitals, said:

“It’s hugely important that we stand together and honour those who served and ensure their legacy lives on through community spirit and remembrance.

“As a Veterans Awareness Group at the Trust, we’ve taken part in Remembrance Day services, held an event for the 80^th anniversary of VE Day, and now we’ve rightly remembered those who fought in the Far East, and the tens of thousands who made the ultimate sacrifice for future generations.”

Burma Star Island, in Queen’s Park, remembers those who fought and died in World War Two’s Burma Campaign, which began in December 1941.

During that conflict, more than 50,000 British military were captured and placed in prisoner of war camps, with 30,000 of these being forced to work on the Burma to Thailand railway where more than one in five died.

The Allies retook Burma in mid-1945 and in August 1945 the Japanese surrendered and Victory over Japan Day (VJ Day) was declared.

On Friday Julie Jones, Clinical Audit and Effectiveness Officer at Mid Cheshire Hospitals, was remembering her grandfather, John Kidd, who was among the Allied troops sent to fight in the Far East in the early 1940s.

John was a Regimental Sergeant Major (RSM) in the 1^st Cambridgeshire Regiment.

He was sadly captured in Singapore in 1942 and forced to work on the Hellfire Pass and Hintock Cutting. These were two parts of the Burma to Thailand railway which were constructed by Allied prisoners of war and Asian labourers.

Julie said:

“The railway was completed in the October of 1943 and the emaciated prisoners then started the long journey back to Changi Prison in Singapore.

“My grandfather, along with many others, was too weak to travel further when they were taken off of the barges that had travelled down the River Kwai to Kanchanaburi.”

Having spent time in a makeshift hospital with little to no medication available, Julie’s grandfather tragically died aged 42 from starvation, disease and ulcers.

He was buried in the Commonwealth War Graves Commission cemetery in Kanchanaburi, Thailand.

Julie said:

“My grandfather lived in horrendous, unsanitary conditions, with the camps full of awful diseases.

“Eighty years later, his grave is regularly visited by various family members and friends who refresh his photograph and flowers to remember him.

“It’s hugely important that we continue to remember those who served in the Far East and mark the significance of VJ Day.”

Kerry Lightfoot, Deputy Buyer at Mid Cheshire Hospitals, also attended Friday’s service.

Her grandfather, Francis Mann, was a prisoner of war during the fighting in the Far East.

He served with the Cambridgeshire Regiment. Francis was fortunate to survive the horrific conditions and returned home, but Kerry says his mental health suffered ‘horrendously’.

She added:

“VJ Day is very poignant for myself and my family, it’s an important time to reflect and show gratitude for all their bravery.

“I was honoured to join the group on Friday to remember our grandfather and all those who served in the Far East.”

Mid Cheshire Hospitals signed the Armed Forces Covenant in the summer of 2022 and the Veterans Awareness Group was also formed at the organisation.

The Trust is also formally recognised as a Veteran Aware organisation, having first achieved the status in May 2023 and then successfully reapplied in June 2025.

In November 2024, the Trust received a top national honour for supporting the armed forces community, claiming a prestigious Gold Award from the Ministry of Defence (MOD) Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS).

The Mid Cheshire Hospitals website includes contact details for the Veterans Awareness Group, as well as links to organisations that can support the armed forces community. The page also has information about the Trust’s approach to employing veterans and its support of the Armed Forces Covenant.

For more information, visit: 

mcht.nhs.uk/armedforces

Pictured - VJ Day Service: Trust staff and members of the Veterans Awareness Group at the service on Burma Star Island, in Queen’s Park.