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A Kenilworth historian's final publication about the town could well prove to be his most interesting yet.

And, with the current conflict in Ukraine, Robin Leach's tenth book World War 2 Comes to Kenilworth - which covers townspeople's efforts to help victims of war in the early 1940s - is also very topical.

Robin has written about Kenilworth during the Second World War before but he has collected so much information from newspaper articles, eye minutes accounts, council minutes and other documents that this new book includes 208 pages of mostly new content and 170 photographs.

Schoolchildren, evacuated from Coventry the day war was from declared, carrying their gas masks arrive for their first day at St Nicholas school, on 11th September 1940.

Robin, who moved to Kenilworth in 1972 and, since 1985, has been researching and publishing books about the town's social and industrial history, said: "It's about what the town was like during the war and how people coped.

"Around 200 different people are mentioned in the book and these were air raid wardens, ambulance drivers and crews, first aiders and Women's Volunteer Service (WVS) staff.

"One of the most surprising things I found out, which is very relevant today, is that in the later stages if the war, when it became obvious we were going to win, was there such a large amount of fundraising in the town for various causes.

"And people donated furniture to a part of Shoreditch in London, which had been destroyed by flying bombs in 1944.

As part of the war effort, a Supply Depot was established at Mrs Martins The Spring. Kenilworth Volunteers turned out thousands of pieces of work, including bandages, gas mask covers, mattress covers etc for Kenilworth First Aid post, and blankets, socks, pullovers, etc, using machines donated by residents.

"A lot of people from the town did a lot of good things."

Due to Kenilworth's close proximity to Coventry, a major target for the Luftwaffe's air raids during the Second World War, townspeople fell victim to stray bombs.

On November 21, 1940, a landmine hit Abbey End killing 26 people.

The town was hit and townspeople were killed during other raids too.

The front cover of local historian Robin Leach's new and final book World War 2 Comes to Kenilworth.

Robin said: "It was the same as many other towns.

"People coped as best they could, they got through it, celebrated and then started to move on."

Copies of Robin's book will soon be available from Kenilworth Books in Talisman Square and from his website www.victoriankenilworth.co.uk for £14.95.

Kenilworth historian's book about the town during the Second World War will be his final publication