TAMESIDE Council is asking residents to mark the two-minutes’ silence at 11am on Remembrance Day from their doorsteps.
The authority is backing the campaign for a national show of pride and appreciation similar to the claps for key workers in the spring.
Cllr Janet Cooper, the Civic Mayor of Tameside, said: “The silence on Remembrance Sunday is one of the most poignant times of the year. It allows us to reflect on the sacrifices made for us by the armed forces. Many people will be thinking of loved ones who never returned.
“The need to stop the coronavirus from spreading means we can’t allow people to gather at war memorials. Even so, I believe the sight of people across Tameside observing the 11am silence on their doorsteps will paint a picture of respect and thanks for the fallen that is as powerful and moving as any formal parade.”
Very short ceremonies will take place in Ashton, where the Civic Mayor will lay a wreath on behalf of the borough, in Denton and in Stalybridge. None of these will feature more than six guests – invited by the mayor’s office in consultation with the Royal British Legion – and there will be no bands or processions.
At the start of November, Tameside Local Studies and Archives will be hosting “11 Days of Remembrance”, putting daily stories taken from the Manchester Regiment Archive on social media from Sunday, November 1.
Dukinfield Town Hall is to be floodlit in red over remembrance weekend, and craft activities such as how to make a window poppy will be available from November 1 at www.tameside.gov.uk/culturecrafts