MORE than £205,000 was raised through poppy sales in Gwent last year, a ten percent increase on the year before.

A total of £205,172 was donated by people buying poppies, wreaths and crosses between September 2008 and September 2009, compared to £186,058 during the same period the year before.

In Bettws, Newport, three generations of poppy sellers are carrying on the family tradition.

Pat Husselbee, 67, of Bettws, Newport, has been involved for 55 years and her daughter Anne-Marie Payne, 36, and grandson, Ieuan, nine, were born into poppy-selling.

Mrs Husselbee started selling when she was 12 and is now involved in the administration side.

She will be honoured for her work for the Royal British Legion by meeting Prince William at Saturday’s rugby match between Wales and New Zealand.

Ms Payne is currently the regional co-ordinator in Gwent and is regularly helped by her son.

Phil Gough, 65, from Nantyglo, started selling poppies three years ago, having served in the Royal Marines for 27 years and Territorial Army for ten.

He served in the Persian Gulf, Malta, Norway, Scotland and the Gulf of Aden, but said he never encountered anything like today’s wars.

He said: "The young lads today have seen far more action than we ever saw on active service."

Mr Gough is part of the Nantyglo team, co-ordinated by Tyrone Curtis, 61, which raised £3,000 last year - more than double what they raised the year before.

Lyndon, 68, and Marjorie Moore, 67, are also part of the team and have been selling poppies since the 1980s.

The Royal British Legion’s community fundraiser for south and mid Wales Ruth Henley said: "The Poppy Appeal is as relevant today as it was when it was founded in 1921 because we are currently reminded of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan through the media.

"The current conflicts are life-changing for not only those involved but their family and friends too."