Over 60 war veterans and local dignitaries paid tribute to the Armed Forces in a special ceremony in Thurrock on Monday.

They gathered outside the Civic Offices, the Yellow Advertiser reports, in New Road, Grays, to witness the council raising the flag, as part of Armed Service Day.

The service was led by borough mayor, councillor Anne Cheale, who paid a heartfelt tribute to the Armed Forces. She stated the public will never forget the personal sacrifices every memeber of our Armed Forces make for us every day.

War veterans, council leader John Kent, and other councillors and officers were also in attendance.

Mr Kent said it was poignant, on the day that the MoD had announced the country’s 300th armed forces death in Afghanistan, they were raising money for and awareness of the Help For Heroes chairty, for heroes literally dying for the cause.

The official Armed Service Day takes place this weekend on Saturday, June 26.

The newly elected Labour administration in Thurrock have warned of tough decisions to be made this year.

A leading member of Thurrock Council confirmed that they would have to ‘act like surgeons making cuts to save the patient’, the Yellow Advertiser reported. He vowed, however, that the effect will be minimal to those most vulnerable.

Concerns were also expressed over the previous administration’s spending, with a considerable overspend in the last financial year that had to be covered by the council’s reserves, although he acknowledged people worked hard to cuts costs in that time.

He also called for councillors from all parties, as well as council staff, to work together to reduce spending further. Further details about the cutbacks will be outlined during a special meeting of full council on Wednesday, June 30.

Langdon Hills Country Park is a great place to learn and that’s official!

The Thurrock Council-owned Park recently pledged “to engage in an ongoing process to sustain high quality learning outside the classroom and meet all of the Learning Outside the Classroom Quality Badge indicators”.

The Thurrrock Council website confirmed that this comes after receiving a Learning Outside the Classroom Quality Badge (LOtC) from the Council for Learning Outside the Classroom. It means that the park offers good quality teaching and learning experiences as well as manages risks effectively.

Mathew McGettigan, Education Ranger for Langdon Hills Country Park, said: “We are pleased to receive the quality badge, which puts us in good stead as providers and also for our users. With it, families can be sure their children are getting excellent learning outside the classroom.”

He also added: “For us here, the classroom is the great outdoors, with fun activities being very much ‘hands on’ and contributes to the development of a child.”