A regional daily-backed campaign to commemorate the Blitz in the city it serves has raised he £150,000 needed for the project to go ahead.

The Star, Sheffield, had urged readers to contribute £15,000 to the overall target for the Sheffield Blitz Memorial Trail.

The trail will be set up to mark 75 years since the Second World War bombing of Sheffield in December 1940, which killed and wounded more than 2,000 people and made nearly a tenth of the city’s population homeless.

The Luftwaffe attacks flattened much of the city centre and the industrial East End of the city was also targeted, when Hitler’s planes bombed factories that were a vital part of the war effort.

The aftermath of the Blitz in Sheffield

The Heritage Lottery Fund donated £81,300 to the scheme to get it over the line.

A Sheffield Blitz Memorial Trail will form the centrepiece of the two-and-a-half year project with up to 16 sites around the city centre earmarked for the installation of permanent memorial plaques made in steel.

The award will also fund a major commemoration event to take place on the anniversary.

Sheffield author Neil Anderson, who spearheaded the project, praised The Star campaign’s vital role in the success for the bid and thanked readers for their support.

Neil said: “This is absolutely fantastic news for the city of Sheffield. It will finally allow the sacrifices made by tens of thousands of people in the face of the devastating attacks to get the recognition they deserve.”