CHILDREN, pensioners, servicemen and women and dignitaries from across the city attended a special service in the grounds of Royal School for the Deaf Derby to mark Remembrance Day.
The Dean of Derby, The Very Reverend Dr Peter Robinson, led the memorial service in the grounds of the Ashbourne Road school, which was interpreted into British Sign Language for pupils and staff.
The ceremony, which included a two-minute silence at 11am, was attended by residents of Ridgeway Court, in Warwick Avenue.
Representatives from Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service, Derbyshire Police and Foston Hall also attended the service along with Lord Lieutenant of Derbyshire Elizabeth Fothergill, Mayor of Derby Alan Graves, High Sheriff of Derbyshire Theresa Peltier andDerby North MP Amanda Solloway.
Pupils at the school placed poppies and wooden crosses underneath a flagpole which was erected at the school last year, while a Scottish piper played.
Head teacher Paul Burrows said: “Our Remembrance Service is becoming an important annual event and we are delighted to be able to share it with so many members of the local community.
“Children learned some specific signs so that they could join in the reading of the poem We Remember Them and it was very touching to see even the smallest children in the primary taking part.
“We are also very proud that so many servicemen and women and local dignities chose to attend our school for this important commemoration.”
Mayor of Derby Councillor Alan Graves said: “It’s important that everyone is included in Remembrance Day, so I was particularly pleased to be able to attend this really inclusive event and see the deaf children – who are an important part of our city – taking part.”
Remembrance Day has occurred every year since 1919 and commemorates the British soldiers who gave their lives in various conflicts since World War One.
