CHILDREN have honoured men from their village who died and those who survived fighting for their country, 100 years ago.

Carleton Primary School pupils have planted a tree in memory of the 129 servicemen who went to fight in the First World War - 45 of whom made the ultimate sacrifice and never returned home.

As they marched to the special tree planting ceremony , the youngsters held the names of all the individual soldiers, those written in red representing the men who died and those in black, the survivors.

They assembled in the school playing field to see the tree planted, helped by headboy and headgirl, Jude Rothwell, aged ten, and 11-year-old Mia Holden.

Among the assembled guests was Anne Blood, whose grandfather, Harry Kay , was one of eight brothers who fought on the Western Front and the only one to die.

Harry, a gunner in the Royal Garrison Artillery, was killed in an explosion in October, 1918, aged 37. His name is on the family grave in Carleton but his body is buried at the military cemetery in France.

Anne's husband, Barry Blood, vice-president of the Skipton branch of the Royal British Legion, told the children that Harry was one of a family of 16 - five girls and 11 boys. Eight of the boys fought in the war, seven of them returning home.

"Anne's father was Charlie Kay who enlisted in the 1/6 Duke of Wellington's Regiment and rose to the rank of Staff Sergeant, eventually serving with the tank corps. He was wounded but survived and came home to live in Embsay, " said Mr Blood.

"His younger brother was Fred who was also in the Duke of Wellington's Regiment and we understand went over the top 13 times before his luck ran out and he was wounded. He came home and lived into his 90s."

Mr Blood also told the gathering about the broader elements of the war stressing the contribution of Commonwealth troops from Canada, Newfoundland, New Zealand, Australia, South Africa and India.

Carleton school headteacher Duggie Speight said the children had been involved in a number of other World War One commemorations including a ceremony on Armistice Day.