Events are happening across the Harrogate district this week to mark Remembrance Day and the centenary of the Royal British Legion.

The pandemic reduced last year’s commemorations to small scale events but this year organisers are encouraging people to attend services and parades to remember those who have given their lives.

Below is a list of events. If you know of others that we have missed let us know so we can add them to this guide. Email us at contact@thestrayferret.co.uk.

Sunday November 14

Harrogate

Harrogate War Memorial:

A service at the war memorial will begin at 10.30am before a two-minute silence is observed. Local dignitaries, members of the armed forces and community groups will attend and lay wreaths.

Harrogate Borough Council has asked those attending to social distance and wear face masks if possible.

Stonefall Cemetery:

Harrogate Brigantes Rotary has arranged a service for 1pm. Wreaths will be laid by the Harrogate Mayor and Mayoress, Andrew Jones MP, the Army Foundation College and representatives from the Commonwealth.

St Mark’s Church, Leeds Road

Remembrance services on at 9am and 10.30am.

Killinghall:

A Remembrance Sunday service will take place at St Thomas’s Church, Killinghall at 10am. Members of the public are invited to join staff and junior soldiers from the Army Foundation College.

At approximately 10.40am the congregation we will walk to the war memorial on Ripon Road for a short Act of Remembrance service followed by refreshments at the village hall.

Starbeck:

A service will be held later in the afternoon on Sunday. A parade will start at Starbeck Methodist Church at 2.40pm to arrive at the war memorial for a service at 3pm.

Knaresborough

The Knaresborough branch of the Royal British Legion has organised a parade on Remembrance Sunday.

A church service at St John’s Church will begin at 9.30am on Sunday. Then a parade of the Knaresborough Royal British Legion standard will march up the High Street towards the castle grounds for a short service at the war memorial at 11am.

Ripon

Ripon’s Remembrance Sunday service is held at the city’s war memorial, followed by a service at the cathedral.

Those wishing to attend are asked to assemble at Spa Gardens from 10.30am. Around 300 troops are expected to attend alongside local dignitaries and the city’s branch of the Royal British Legion.

Following the service, there will be a march past and salute in front of Ripon Town Hall, with the procession leading to the cathedral, where a further service will be held.

Read more:

• Ceremony marks start of remembrance events in Ripon
• Knaresborough’s 30,000 knitted poppies honour the dead

Masham 

In Masham, a small service will be held on the market square. People are being asked to congregate from 10.30am.

Boroughbridge 

The Boroughbridge branch of the Royal British Legion has organised a service of remembrance and wreath laying at the town’s war memorial on the Butermarket led by Rev Karen Gardiner.

People are invited to start arriving from 10.30am. There will be no parade this year.

Supporters of the Annual Poppy Appeal in Ripon are finding only limited places in the City to buy their poppies this year.

As Armistice Day and Remembrance Sunday approach, there was an expectation that poppies would be available in more than 250 shops, pubs, cafes, restaurants and businesses across the city, but that has not materialised.

At the time of publication, poppies could only be purchased in the city’s Morrisons, Booths and Sainsbury’s supermarkets.

Jeet Bahadur Sahi, chairman of the Royal British Legion Ripon Branch, told the Stray Ferret:

“We used to have an in-branch Poppy Appeal organiser, but arrangements were taken over by the Regional office and we were advised only recently that the person allocated to organise the distribution in Ripon had been called away on military duties.

“Despite offers of help from the Mayor of Ripon, city council leader Andrew Williams and myself, to deliver poppies and collecting tins, we were told this is not possible due to the short timescale.

“This is extremely disappointing. In previous years people have been supporting the Poppy Appeal at more than 250 outlets in Ripon and thousands of pounds have been raised.”

The town hall, decked in hand-made poppies by the Ripon Community Poppy Project

The Mayor of Ripon, Councillor Eamon Parkin, said:

“The situation is both embarrassing and disappointing for Ripon, a city with military connections going back over many years.

“In this, the 100th anniversary year of the Royal British Legion, there are thousands of hand-knitted poppies on display across the city, but there are only a handful of places where people can buy one to wear and show their support for the Poppy Appeal.”

A Royal British Legion spokesperson said:

“The exact location of Poppy boxes is going to vary from area to area depending on volunteer coverage.

“However, through our collectors and partner organisations, poppies have been distributed to all major UK supermarkets including Sainsbury’s, Tesco, Morrisons, Aldi and Asda stores as well as via online retailers including the Poppy Shop, Amazon and eBay, so poppies are readily available in Ripon.

“They are available at every point-of-sale in the large Morrisons, including customer services, and on the tills at Booths Supermarket in the town.

The spokesperson added that there are no issues with poppy distribution in any other areas of North Yorkshire.

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