Stratford-on-Avon District Council Remembers

The Chairman of Stratford-on-Avon District Council, Cllr Christopher Kettle is hosting a Service of Remembrance and Roll of Honour to commemorate the 100th Anniversary of the end of World War I on Thursday 8 November.  

The service will be held outside the District Council offices on Church Street, Stratford-upon-Avon (weather permitting) at 10.40am.  

A formal Roll of Honour for all those who died as a result of the War across the district has been created with the help of District Council officers, Parish and Town Councils and members of the Royal British Legion and will be presented at the service.  

The book will be printed both as a formal record and as an electronic publication through the District Council's dedicated World War I website to be launched alongside the service of commemoration - www.stratford.gov.uk/WW1  [ Please note this website won't be live until week commencing 5 November.] 

There will also be a service together with war poems and readings offered by local school pupils together with the sounding of The Last Post and Reveille.

Cllr Christopher Kettle, Chairman of Stratford-on-Avon District Council says: "During the research about our district and as part of the planning for our own commemorations, it became clear that whilst most parishes have a record of their losses, there is no complete record of the number or names of those who died across the district of Stratford-on-Avon.  This Roll of Honour seeks to put that record straight so that as a district we can commemorate and remember all those who fell in Flanders and further foreign fields.  Information has been diligently gathered from Town and Parish Councils, national records and local war memorials.

"Alongside the printed version of the Roll of Honour, a micro-website has been created.  This includes a digital version of the register which can be accessed through the internet to reach a wider audience and assist researchers in the future.

"It has been a privilege for me to lead on this project and I would like to thank Tony Perks and Craig Bourne of Stratford-on-Avon District Council and Wendy Buckley of Bishop's Itchington for their wholehearted support."

The District Council has also purchased two WW1 Tommy Statues for Stratford-upon-Avon - the 6ft version of the 'There But Not There' Logo, a poignant and affecting image which embodies the There But Not There message. Standing tall, with a red poppy on their chests, they are a haunting tribute to the millions who fell in the First World War. They will be on display in Bancroft Gardens and the District Council offices.

The District Council has purchased a further eight 'Tommies' for the main village centres in Stratford-on-Avon District including: Alcester, Bidford-on-Avon, Henley-in-Arden, Kineton, Shipston-on-Stour, Southam, Studley and Wellesbourne.