Community comes together in tribute to those lost during the pandemic

The service took place at Bridgnorth's St Leonard's Church, and was organised by Perry & Phillips Funeral Directors.

Chris Adams, proprietor of Perry & Phillips, said that the idea of the service had been to give people a chance to come together and say goodbye, after 18 months where attendance at funerals and memorials has been hugely limited.

During the service the names of more than 400 people who had died during the pandemic were shown on a screen.

Those attending were addressed by Rev Preb Simon Cawdell, Roman Catholic priest, Father Iain Griffiths, and civil celebrant Jenny Good.

As part of the service there were also musical performances from Jessica Fox, Daniel Morris, and Stephen Lomas and his choir.

Mr Adams said that after 18 months of restrictions on how people could conduct funerals, the service was a way for people to come together and pay collective and individual tribute.

He said: "We have been very aware the funeral industry has been unbelievably innovative in finding ways to give meaning to funeral services and to give closure to some people but that has been very difficult when at some points you could only have six people at a service. It went up to 15 and then to 30 but it is very difficult when you want to mark someone's life."

He added: "People have been trying to think of ways they could help and we felt it was the right time to bring the community together, which we did."

The service also featured a video tribute from Love Bridgnorth, along with an oral tribute from Councillor Kirstie Hurst-Knight, talking about the impact of the pandemic on the community and its response to that challenge.

Mr Adams thanked those who had taken part and supported the event, adding: "It shows the strength of the community in what has been an incredibly testing time."