Service to remember Pals’ sacrifice

The commemoration will take place on Friday, July 1, at 11am at the Bradford Pals Memorial Stone, located to the rear of the Cenotaph in Centenary Square.

It is an annual event that ensures the sacrifice made by the Bradford Pals on July 1, 1916, at the First World War Battle of the Somme is never forgotten.

Prayers will be led by the Lord Mayor’s Chaplain Maulana Fazal Dad and the Dean of Bradford Cathedral, the Rev Dr David Ison, and readings will be given by pupils from Newby Primary School.

Lord Mayor Coun Naveeda Ikram will lay a wreath on behalf of the city.

“This commemoration service is always very important as it ensures we remember the sacrifices that many of the Bradford Pals made,” the Lord Mayor said.

The Bradford Pals formed part of the West Yorkshire Regiment and on July 1, 1916, they took part in an attack around the village of Serre in Northern France.

By the end of the first hour of the battle, more than 1,700 men from Bradford had been killed or injured.