IN a ‘first’ for Chiddingfold, 28 Royal Navy crew members from its affiliated ship headed a 9am parade of uniformed groups from the village hall to St Mary’s Church for the Remembrance Sunday service.

HMS Chiddingfold – or ‘Cheery Chid’ as the Hunt-class minesweeper is known – has enjoyed close links with the village for more than 30 years, but this was the first time almost the entire crew was able to attend Remembrance Sunday.

To celebrate the affiliation, Chiddingfold Parish Council hosted a reception for the crew in the village hall, with displays by Chiddingfold Archive, Year 6 pupils of St Mary’s School and the village nursery.