Nottingham will take part in the ‘Fly a Flag for the Commonwealth’ celebration by flying the Commonwealth flag from the Council House at Old Market Square.
Members of the public are welcome to join guests at Old Market Square to celebrate the annual tradition on Monday 13 March. There will also be a selection of food stalls, showcasing food from around the Commonwealth.
The Commonwealth is made up of 53 countries across all six continents. The blue and yellow flag will be flown in unique and eye-catching locations throughout these countries to represent the values of unity and tolerance within our multi-cultural world.
The initiative was launched in 2014 and since then has seen the Commonwealth flag flown in over 1000 ceremonies in 2016 alone.
Here in Nottingham, we have our own plans to make the flag-flying ceremony another success:
- At 09:54am the Lord Mayor of Nottingham, Councillor Mohammed Saghir, will give a speech on the Council House steps about the day
- Commander Peter Moore, Deputy Lieutenant, will then read a personal message from the Secretary General of the Commonwealth
- Finally, Nottingham students Tony Ndlovu (14) and Olivia Nore (13), both of Trinity Catholic School in Aspley, will be reading out the Commonwealth affirmation
- At 10:00am, the Commonwealth flag will then be proudly raised on the Council House flagpole in unison with those around the country.
Lord Mayor of Nottingham, Councillor Mohammed Saghir, said: “Nottingham City Council is delighted to host a ceremony to raise the Commonwealth flag in its fourth year of celebration.”
“It is a great opportunity for people in Nottingham to come together and show that we are united in our support for the shared goals that the Commonwealth works towards.”