A MEMORIAL to a record-breaking Weymouth student has been restored by the borough council.

The Stainforth Memorial, in Greenhill Gardens, commemorates the achievements of Wing Commander George Stainforth, who set a world speed record in 1931 when he flew a Schneider Supermarine S6B sea plane at 406.92 mph.

Stainforth was a student at Weymouth College from 1915 to 1917.

The memorial – a plane set on a tablet of Portland Stone – has been in the gardens since 1952.

Cllr Andy Blackwood, Community Facilities briefholder, said: “This memorial is a part of Weymouth’s proud history and serves as a reminder of a great achievement by a former student of our town.

“I am very pleased we have been able to save it for future generations to enjoy. It is an asset to our beautiful Greenhill Gardens.”

The conservation work was done by Emma Norris, of Humphries and Jones in Crewkerne, specialists in Sculpture and Architectural Conservation.

She said: “It was an interesting project and in many ways just as complex as restoring a medieval artefact. The plane had sustained extensive damage from the forces of nature and exposure to the prevailing weather. We had to conserve its metal core and then completely reconstruct it.”