Remembrance Sunday in Hinckley | Hinckley & Bosworth Borough Council

Published Friday, 30 October 2020

Hinckley’s Atkins Building is among the landmarks in the county to be lit up in red in support of the Royal British Legion’s Poppy Appeal 2020 once again this year.

While COVID-19 has meant that the Legion’s 2020 Poppy Appeal has had to go online, families can still get involved by downloading and colouring in a Remembrance Poppy to display in their window as a show of support for the appeal. For more information visit make a donation (britishlegion.org.uk) 

Borough residents are also being asked to stay home on Remembrance Sunday this year and find other ways to honour those who served and sacrificed themselves in the line of duty.

In line with national government guidance on social distancing, most large outdoor events across the country have been scaled back or moved online this year including Remembrance Sunday services and parades.

In Hinckley, the service and parade to mark Armistice and pay tribute to the fallen that is usually attended by several thousand people the Memorial Gardens, will not go ahead in its usual way this year.

Instead, a short film of a limited closed service will be pre-recorded and made available for people to watch on the council’s YouTube and social media channels from the safety of their own homes on Remembrance Sunday. 

Residents are being asked to carry out their own acts of remembrance at home this year. Simple tributes can include poppies displayed at home or standing outside the home to mark the Act of Remembrance in silent prayer and contemplation at 11am on Sunday 8 November and Wednesday 11 November 2020. 

Anyone wishing to visit the war memorial in person to pay their respects is asked to do so at an alternative time of their choosing this year to reduce the risk of crowds gathering at the site and help everyone to comply with social distancing guidelines and the rule of six.

Mayor of Hinckley & Bosworth Councillor Lynda Hodgkins said: “It is a real pity that this event can’t take place in its usual way this year, but it’s important we do everything we can to keep infection rates down.  The Remembrance Sunday service is always a very moving occasion and I am honoured to be taking the salute on behalf of the borough.  I hope that people will still take a moment to remember the fallen wherever and however they choose to do so and take advantage of some of the alternative ways to support the important work of the Royal British Legion this year.”

Please check individual parish council websites and the council’s events page for listings for other Remembrance service arrangements throughout the borough this year.