Claire Hazelgrove MP joins 1st Bradley Stoke Scout group for Remembrance Service

Bradley Stoke held its annual Remembrance Service at the Willow Brook Centre on Sunday 8th November. Organised by the 1st Bradley Stoke Scout group, the community was brought together to pay tribute to members of the Armed Forces who have lost their lives in conflict and to recognise the service of veterans past and present.

Claire Hazelgrove MP, local MP for the Filton and Bradley Stoke constituency, joined the parade alongside local councillors, community organisations and youth groups. The parade began outside Tesco at the Willow Brook Centre and finished at the Town Square with a moving Remembrance Service to honour those who have served and sacrificed for our country.

Vincent, Julia, Connor, Edie, Flis, Arav, Isabelle and Kishan from local youth groups began the service by delivering touching stories from the Battle of the Somme which marks its 110th anniversary.  Reverend Rich Cresswell spoke of the faithfulness and loyalty shown by all those on the frontline.

Following a moment of silence, to give thanks and remember, the local youth groups and community members, including local MP Claire Hazelgrove, then laid their wreaths and paid tribute to those who we have lost. The annual service remains an important tradition within the community and opportunity for residents to come together in remembrance and reflection.

Claire Hazelgrove, MP for the Filton and Bradley Stoke constituency, said:

“It was an honour to join the remembrance service at Bradley Stoke’s Willow Brook Centre, led wonderfully by our local youth groups. 

“We gathered to remember and give our thanks to all those who have given their everything for the freedoms we hold dear today. 

“Our excellent young speakers did themselves and all of us proud. It is a real credit to them that this poignant service is led by our youth groups, passing on this important tradition of remembrance on from one generation to the next. 

“It is right that we pause, reflect, remember, and give thanks as a community for the sacrifices of a generation. With many generations of my family having served in our forces, it’s a tradition of great importance to me personally, too. 

“Thank you to 1st Bradley Stoke Scout Group and everyone involved in organising today’s poignant service, and to everyone in the community who came along. 

” Thank you, too, to everyone involved in organising a number of services taking place at the same time across our community on Remembrance Sunday.

“Many thanks, too, to Cllr Sue Bancroft for laying a wreath on my behalf at the same time in Stoke Gifford, and Ian Campbell for doing so in Mangotsfield.

“Together, we will remember them.”