A FOUNTAIN dedicated to 56 years of peace since the Second World War has been unveiled in Southampton. The Queen's Peace fountain is the central feature in the city centre's East Park and marks the end of a five-year initiative by The City Of Southampton Society to raise money towards the £150,000 monument.

Work on the fountain started in March with the society collecting £67,000 in donations from firms across the city and the remainder of the money coming from Southampton City Council along with the Heritage Lottery Fund.

Its completion coincides with Southampton's week-long Lammas Festival which starts tomorrow celebrating its agricultural past.

The central parks are sited on what were previously Lammas lands, cultivated privately for six months and made available for common grazing and other uses.

The fountain has been the brainchild of former Southampton mayor Jack Candy.

He said: "It's the people's fountain and we would like to see more of them across the city, not just in the city centre but across Southampton.

"The City of Southampton Society felt that Southampton's attractiveness should be improved."

As part of the unveiling of the new monument there will be a formal blessing by the vicar-in-charge of St Michael's church, the Rev Belinda Searle-Barnes tomorrow at 3pm.

The fountain is part of a £3.5m lottery-funded transformation of the city's central parks with a further £1m funding coming from the City Council.

Executive member for leisure and tourism Derek Burke said: "This is a tremendous asset to our parks and fits in nicely to our £3.5m revamp. It is also a lovely congregation point."