VETERANS and about a hundred residents turned out to the rededication of the memorial plaque at Haxby Village Hall.

Veterans travelled from as far as Leeds and Hull to take part in the short parade, accompanied with music from local performers Generation Groove, who played songs from the First World War.

Local veterans, branches of the Royal British Legion and members of The Leeds Rifles Association, along with other military associations, gathered in Haxby Village Green with their standards, for the short walk to the village hall, with scores of shopkeepers and residents applauding as they passed.

Peter Copley, originally from Acomb but now living in Haxby, served with the Army between 1965 and 1972, and said the rededication and parade were more important now than ever, on the eve of the centenary of the First World War.

He said: "I don't think people should forget. Not now, not ever, and events like this help to remind them."

Ken Butterfield, who lives in Walmgate, served with the Airborne regiment between 1950 and 1955, and said: "It's becoming more popular now, remembering the wars. A few years back, it was less popular, but Afghanistan and seeing those coffins coming back has brought it home how important it is to remember."

Reverend Kathryn Jackson of St Mary's Church, Haxby, and Reverend Philip Turner of Haxby and Wigginton Methodist Church led the service outside the hall, before moving indoors to reveal the plaque.

Rev Jackson said: "We dedicate this building and this plaque to the memory of those who have served their country. May it be for us and this community an expression of our commitment to work for peace and justice."