THE Army has hit back at claims people are unable to visit family graves at Imber Church.

Although the area is only open to the public on particular days, people are able to make accompanied visits to the churchyard for a specific reason, like to tend a grave.

The comments follow a story in last week's Wiltshire Times.

Army Spokesman Karen Moseley said: "The priority is safety. We can't have people wandering in to a live firing range, but we try to make life as easy as possible for people who want to come and look at the graves."

Details of how to contact the Army are in the Salisbury training newsletter which goes out to 54 parishes around Salisbury Plain.