Alford Gardner and son Howard on their Windrush memoir, Jamaica, RAF service and life in Leeds

It coincided with the 75th anniversary on June 22 of the HMT Empire Windrush arriving at Tilbury Docks from Kingston, Jamaica, bringing the first cohort of a new wave of migrants to help rebuild Britain - and Alford is one of the few living passengers to have made the voyage.

It tells the story of Alford’s youth in Jamaica, RAF service for Britain, resettlement after the Windrush and how he forged a life in Leeds.

Howard says: “People have been saying: ‘You need to write a book, you need to get it all written down’. But the thing was, I'm not a writer - I left school at 15 - so it was who do we get to do it? Eventually, after speaking to Arthur Torrington (director and co-founder) of the Windrush Foundation, he suggested that I do it. I wrote a few pages and sent it off to Arthur Torrington, he had a quick look at it, he says: ‘Go for it’.”

Born in Kingston in 1926, Alford was 17 when he applied to join the RAF at the height of the Second World War, having seen an advert in Jamaican newspaper The Gleaner encouraging people to sign up.

“At least you knew you had a job if you were able to join the RAF,” says Alford. “You had a start in life.”

He had to be 18 before he could actually join and arrived in the UK in June 1944 and participated in basic training at RAF Hunmanby Moor camp, near Filey.

However, before arriving in England his ship stopped in Havana and Mexico before docking in Bermuda for five days.

During the war Alford worked as a mechanic repairing and maintaining vehicles.

Afterwards he did a six month engineering training course in Leeds before being sent back to Jamaica at the end of 1947.

But unable to find work, he was among those who travelled to England on board HMT Empire Windrush.

“There was always a bit of singing or dancing,” says Alford, of his time on the boat.

He returned to Leeds, one of many who started a new life in the city and was a founding member of the Caribbean Cricket Club, which is still going today.

Alford and his family settled in the Hyde Park area of the city and put his wartime skills to use working as an engineer before retiring in the 1980s.

He also featured in For King, Country and Home, an exhibition in Leeds which finished last month but explored the lives of the West Indians joined the RAF during the Second World War through photographs, keepsakes and memories. His picture was also included in the Here: Windrush 75 Leeds exhibition.

Speaking about how his generation is now recognised with anniversary events, Alford, who lives in Bramley, says: “It’s more than I could have expected. Things are going on now which I didn't expect. But it's progress.”

Finding Home: A Windrush Story is out now.