A century spent caring for the welfare of ex-servicemen and their families has been recognised with the gift of a high honour.

All branches of the Royal British Legion in Maidstone were granted the Freedom of the Borough at a ceremony in the Town Hall on Wednesday.

The Royal British Legion (RBL) was founded by Earl Haig in 1921 to ease soldiers’ suffering following the First World War. Sadly, there have been all too many wars and conflicts since then, which has meant the work of the RBL has never stopped.

There are three branches in the borough of Maidstone: Headcorn, Sutton Valence and District, and Maidstone itself.

The chairmen of all three branches, Alan Port, Mike Fitzgerald and Dave Naghi respectively, were at the event to receive their Freedom certificates on behalf of their members from the Mayor, Cllr Gordon Newton.

Cllr Fay Gooch (Ind) proposed the Freedom motion, saying that it recognised the vital work of the RBL both in ensuring continued remembrance of the fallen, and in its welfare work for wounded and distressed service personnel.

Behind her, other councilors lined up to praise the RBL and its work. Green councillor Stephen Thompson described freedom as “that most delicate flower of our society that must sometimes be defended by force”.

He said it was society’s duty to care well for those servicemen who defended our freedoms on their return from conflict.

Cllr Clive English (Lib Dem) agreed, saying: “This country and our Allies owe a great debt to our Armed Services.”

The motion to grant the RBL branches the Freedom of the Borough was passed unanimously.

Mr Fitzgerald said he accepted the honour “with pride”.

But he reminded all present, that even after 100 years, the need for the services of the RBL was still growing.

Last week, the council granted planning permission – against planning officers’ advice – for a hub and training workshop for ex-servicemen and women to be built in Headcorn.

It is the initiative of two ex-servicemen, “Twiggy” Roberts and “Legless” Francis, who suffered while serving in more recent conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.