A WORLD-FIRST memorial statue marking the 200th anniversary of the abolition of the slave trade will be created by a sculptor from Upper Clatford.

Les Johnson will create a 14ft-high bronze and granite memorial featuring eight larger-than-life statues of slaves and a relief detailing the story of the slave trade, to be located in Hyde Park in London.

The memorial will be the first of its kind in any major capital city of a country involved in the slave trade.

Mr Johnson said: "It's brilliant to be involved, but it's not the artist's signature that will matter - it is all about the memorial and what it stands for. It's certainly the biggest project I've ever been involved in, and it is hugely pleasing to believe that I will leave something like this behind after I am gone."

Rather than creating an apologetic or downbeat memorial, Mr Johnson said he wanted to commemorate enslaved Africans and their descendants in a positive way.

He added: "I wanted it to be inspiring. I also wanted to acknowledge that they resisted slavery and played a hugely important part in gaining their freedom, and that we are all beneficiaries of their labour as they paved the way for the industrial revolution.

"The other thing I wanted to do was to show the story of the slave trade on the relief, so that you won't need to read a history book to understand it."

Once the plans for the memorial and garden is approved by Westminster City Council, Memorial 2007 - the committee behind the project - will start raising the £1.5 million needed to fund it.

Mr Johnson, who has previously created sculptures for P&O ships and Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service, said that sculpting the statues and plinth will take around two years, but he does not expect to be able to begin until 2009.

Another one of his sculptures, celebrating the efforts of Port of London dockworkers, is set to be unveiled at the Royal Victoria Dock later this year.