THE family of a Royal Marine who has been denied a place on Penarth's Cenotaph have handed in a petition to the Vale council signed by nearly 3000 people.

Paul Woodland, who served his country in Afghanistan and Iraq, died during a training exercise in October 2012. So far his family's efforts to have his name added on to the town's list of fallen soldiers has been refused by the Vale council on the grounds that he did not die during a recognised conflict.

His fiancée Sian's campaign has seen a groundswell of support from across the UK in a week where it has been revealed that not only are there no national guidelines that would have dictated the Vale council's decision but that there are already at least seven civilians listed on the Cenotaph in Alexandra Park.

The petition was handed in no Tuesday, September 16 by Sian, Paul's mother Alicia and regional AM Andrew RT Davies who has been campaigning against the decision and raised the matter during First Minister's Questions in the Assembly earlier this week.

Welsh Conservative leader Mr Davies has said that Vale council should be "ashamed" of the decision.

Sian, who has recently been appointed as a fundraiser for the Forces Support charity having raised close to £25,000 since Paul's death, said that the discovery of civilian names on the Cenotaph makes the Vale council's decision even more difficult to accept.

One of these names is of a lady named Emily Ada Pickford, who died in a tragic car accident in 1919 while in Belgium with her husband orchestrating concerts for the troops.

"I'm not taking anything away from that lady or her family," said Sian. "She should be on there but so should Paul.

"If an exception can be made, then why can't it be made for someone who was a British serving soldier who had been in combat."

Speaking about the support the campaign has seen so far, Sian said: "It has made me more determined.

"I am willing to meet with the council to try to agree a compromise but ultimately my goal is to get his name on the cenotaph."

The council had suggested placing a bench or tree in Paul's memory in the park but his mother Alicia refused the suggestion saying: "He was worth more than that."

After handing in the petition at the council offices on Holton Road, Barry - where Mr Davies, Sian and Alicia were told that council Leader Neil Moore was on annual leave and no officers were available to speak with them - Mr Davies said: "I hope the Vale council will reflect on their original knee-jerk reaction and put a bit of thought into this.

"Someone who served their country for nine years has died on active service and we should honour him for what he did. That is what the memorial is for.

“Paul has served in Afghanistan and Iraq and his name is on the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire but not in the community where he was born, brought up. To me, and I’m sure to most right-minded people, that is simply appalling."