Various military plaques adorn the Elworth home of army veteran, Jim Munro, who has taken over as chairman of the long-standing group.

Jim moved to Sandbach from the London area and is keen to see the British Legion's Sandbach branch grow in membership and continue to thrive.

He, like other veterans, is proud of the part he has played in his military career and wants to put back some of this expertise and knowledge into chairing the Sandbach branch and moving forward.

A treasured photo Jim has of his army days. (Photo: Jim Munro)

The veteran, who served with the Royal Army Ordnance Corps from 1975 until 1986 did two tours in Northern Ireland as well as a tour in Cyprus.

And it's this passion for all things military alongside his love of music which is the driving force in his new role as chairman.

"It's important that we keep the branch active and moving forward into the future which means increasing membership so we can do more and achieve more each year," said Jim who worked at London's Heathrow Airport before retiring.

"We are such a vibrant and lively branch but we do need more members and people to come to meetings and get involved in events."

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Sandbach's War Memorial in Market Place is awash with residents for the annual Poppy Day service and prior to that,for the launch of the hugely successful poppy appeal which runs for two weeks.

Every year, the British Legional's riders branch roars into town to launch the poppy appeal which raises in excess of £20,000 a year in Sandbach alone.

This involves having teams of poppy collectors stationed at various locations throughout the town and also at the nearby motorway service stations at Junction 17 - all of which requires precise planning and co-ordination.

Several members attend the monthly breakfast club for veterans and serving personnel held at The Military Arms in Congleton Road.

(Photo: Jim Munro)

Add to that there has been a Poppy Ball and various quiz nights plus other events which help fundraise but says Jim, what is needed are more members.

"I'm conscious that we need to if possible get more members of the community involved of all ages - this is the only way we will continue to grow."

The Sandbach branch of the British Legion has a regularly updated Facebook page here and anyone wanting to join can sign up here

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