Parade support grows as Mercians' ale brews

Hundreds of children are set to show their support for Nottinghamshire’s soldiers when they parade through Newark a week on Tuesday.

Pupils, from secondary and primary schools, will line the route from Tolney Lane to the Market Place as 2nd Battalion, The Mercian Regiment (Worcesters and Foresters) exercise their freedom of the town.

Newark’s Magnus Church of England School will be represented, as will The Grove School, Balderton, which is bringing 100 pupils.

Coach

Youngsters from Balderton Day Nursery will attend, as will 80 children from Oliver Quibell Infants’ School, Newark, 50 from Highfields School and 30 from Hawtonville Junior School.

Christ Church Infants’ School will be represented, with numbers to be confirmed.

Hobby Horse Day Nursery, East Stoke, will have 25 youngsters at the parade.

Forest View Primary, Ollerton, hopes to send a 39-seater coach of its pupils, as the battalion boasts many Ollerton-born troops.

Parents with children at Claypole Primary School can take them out of school to see the march.

The head, Mrs Heather Burns, said: “It started with an approach from a parent who wanted their daughter to go.

“I believe we should support and show respect to people who put their lives on the line and decided to open it up to all parents.”

After the march, the Advertiser — in partnership with Newark and Nottinghamshire Agricultural Society, and in a national first — will host a battalion luncheon of roast beef and Yorkshire pudding at Newark Showground.

A specially-made ale, called Liberty, produced by Springhead brewery of Sutton-on-Trent will accompany the meal.

The managing director of Springhead, Helen Teasdale, said the brewery was delighted to be involved and serving its specially-commissioned and aptly-named 3.8% pale ale to the returning heroes.

The Mercians are home from their third six-month tour of Afghanistan in only five years, and will be returning in 2011.

The first tour was free of fatalities.

Nine men were killed during the second tour, and five died on the third.

Major Tony Seager, officer commanding Headquarters Company, 2 Mercian, said: “We have invested heavily in the future of Afghanistan and paid a price in blood doing so.”

Mercians provided security for the Afghan national elections, fostered links with communities, trained local soldiers and police, and played a major role in frontline fighting.