A MEMORIAL service to commemorate those who have died in conflict from the Hawes and High Abbotside area will also unveil a new stone war memorial for the town.

Hawes and High Abbotside Parish Council has organised the event which will take place at 3pm on Sunday, July 17, and will include a service of dedication, hymns and memories.

Hawes Silver Band will play from 2.45pm from the Green in Hawes, where the new war memorial stands, and members of the public will assemble on the A684, which will be closed for the duration of the service.

Leader of Hawes and High Abbotside Parish Council Cllr John Blackie will start proceedings at 3pm.

He said: “There has been a glaring omission in the parishes of Hawes and High Abbotside in the Upper Dales for very nearly 100 years and that is the lack of a war memorial to the fallen in WW1 and WWII.

“Unbelievably for such a small community - just 1500 strong at the present day - there were 64 local people from Hawes and High Abbotside who made the ultimate sacrifice with their lives in one or the other of the two wars.

“Recently Hawes and High Abbotside Parish Council resolved to address the lack of a memorial in the town, and have commissioned a superb structure with one of the best stonemasons in the Upper Dales, Jim Spensely.

“The parish council has stretched its resources to the limit and beyond to commission a war memorial fitting of the sacrifice those who gave their lives made, and one that will be a testament to their bravery that will still be evident prominently within the local community 100 years or more from now.”

At the ceremony on Sunday, Hawes Community Primary School will perform a song, and representatives from the army, Church of England, Royal British Legion, emergency services and North Yorkshire County Council will attend.

The event will conclude with a two minute silence, the Last Post, and the laying of wreaths.

Car parking on the day will be free at the Gayle Lane Car Park, opposite the new war memorial on the Green.