200 to be granted town's highest honour

More than 200 men and women of the recently-formed Rifles Regiment will be marching through the town centre next month to be presented with the Freedom of Entry to the borough.

It is the first time in more than 30 years that a military unit has been granted the honour - the last was the airmen of RAF Finningley.

Doncaster is also the first town in the country to give such recognition to The Rifles, who were formed last February with the amalgamation of four smaller regiments, including The Light Infantry which was a successor unit to the King’s Own Yorkshire Light Infantry who had a long historical association with Doncaster and recruited heavily from the area during most of the 20th century, both in wartime and peace.

The parade and ceremony takes place at the Mansion House on Saturday, September 8, at 11am, culminating in the presentation of the Freedom of Entry scroll to acknowledge the regiment’s connections with the borough.

The regiment, led by a band and bugles, will parade from Waterdale to the Mansion House, where they stand to attention for inspection by the Chair of Council, the Deputy Lord Lieutenant of South Yorkshire, and Colonels of the regiment.

Among the troops on parade will be regulars, territorials and cadets, as well as old soldiers who belong to the Regimental Association.

Senior military officers from regimental depots as far afield as Edinburgh and Salisbury will also be in attendance.

Chair of Doncaster Council, Coun Tony Sockett said: “Freedom of Entry is the highest honour that a Council can give to a military unit, and this is a momentous occasion.”