A MEMORIAL service for all those wanting to pay their respects and remember all the men and women who have died in the war in Afghanistan will be held in Huddersfield on Sunday.

 The Bishop of Wakefield, the Rt Rev Stephen Platten will preach at the service which will be held in Huddersfield Parish Church, St Peter’s in the town centre at 3pm.

The vicar of Huddersfield, the Rev Simon Moor, said he had been touched by the number of local people, veterans and local organisations that had been in touch to ask if he could organise a service for them to pay their respects following the deaths of the six young soldiers who died in a road bomb in southern Afghanistan on March 6.

Five of the men were from the 3^rd Battalion the Yorkshire Regiment whose historic home is the town of Halifax and three of them were from Huddersfield and Holme Valley areas. Their funerals were held last week.

The Revd Simon Moor said:  “I have been struck by the weight of feeling of people for these recent sad deaths and many had asked if we could do something.

“This memorial service is a chance for the town and the wider community to come together, pay their respects and remember all our young men and women who given their lives for their country out there,” he added.

Bishop Platten said: “The Church is committed to doing everything it can to support the families of those involved in the war in Afghanistan and indeed the wider community who have been touched by recent events.”

Bishop Platten is the lead spokesperson for defence issues in the House of Lords, where he sits as one of 26 bishops. Last year he was heavily involved in securing the Military Covenant within the Armed Forces Bill.

Books of condolence are still open in Huddersfield Parish Church and in Halifax Minster – historically the home of the Regiment  – and they are available for anyone to sign.

Memorial service starts at 3pm. St Peter’s Church, Byram St, Huddersfield. HD1 1BU