THE armed forces were honoured during a flag raising ceremony.

Cotswold District Council commemorated Armed Forces Day on Monday by hosting flag raising ceremonies at both its Cirencester headquarters and its Moreton Area Centre office.

The ceremonies were attended by representatives of the British Legion and other veterans, as well as pupils from Dormer House School, Moreton, the public, and members and staff of the council.

Chairman of the council, Cllr Julian Beale, did the honours at both ceremonies and said: "I was proud to lead the celebrations at both venues, welcoming past and present members of the armed forces to commemorate this special day.

"I was also very pleased to see so many attendees from local schools, the public and the council, which I believe shows an increasing awareness about the heroic role of the armed forces in helping to safeguard the wellbeing of our communities and making the world a safer place.

“Most recently, they were deployed in neighbourhoods across Britain when the security alert was increased to critical level following the cowardly terrorist attacks in Manchester and London.

"As you can imagine, their work is extremely dangerous at times and can result in serious injury or fatalities.”