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From the Listing entry: "Erected in 1921 by Ealing Borough Council to the design of Leonard Shuffrey. Extended after 1945 to commemorate the dead of the Second World War. ... The memorial forms the principal entrance gates to Pitzhanger Manor, remodelled by Sir John Soane in 1802, which was used as Ealing public library from 1901-1984. It was designed by the Ealing architect, Leonard Shuffrey, whose son Gilbert died in the First World War and whose name is among those commemorated. The name of one woman, Alice Harman, who was killed in an accident at a munitions factory at Acton in 1916, is also recorded. .... a symmetrical composition comprising gate piers, quadrant walls and end piers supported on a moulded plinth, each pier bearing a stone urn from Elm Grove, the Ealing home of Prime Minister Spencer Perceval."

Describing the planning for this memorial the Ealing page says: "The memorial was to be a gateway, in front of the manor’s main entrance. It was to comprise of two walls, which would list the names of those who had been killed in the war. Finally, there would be a tree-lined avenue from St. Mary’s Road across the green to the gateway." We think they must mean from the High Street, which is a continuation of St Mary's Road. While there are quite a lot of trees on the Green there is no identifiable avenue, as can be seen (or rather, not seen) in our photo.  The world certainly needs more trees and this would seem like a wonderful opportunity for the Council to carry out a long-standing plan and do something good for the planet.