Wedding fayre banner tied to Arundel war memorial: events company 'deeply regrets' act

At 9am on Sunday, Abfab Events put up the sign on the memorial's railings to promote its wedding fayre at Arundel Town Hall.

But after facing a public backlash, it was taken down at 2.30pm.

The team wrote a letter to Arundel Town Council to apologise, and wanted to make clear that the town hall staff had nothing to do with the decision.

In a statement, the Abfab team said they hoped a public apology would 'go some way to making amends for our error in judgement and the naivety of our actions'.

They said: "It was never Abfab Events' intention to diminish or demean the memory and legacy of the incredible service men and women that the memorial stands to recognise and remember.

"Placing a sign at the memorial was without doubt a thoughtless and foolish act and one that we all deeply regret; it was carried out innocently and naively without any malice or hurtful intent whatsoever.

"We apologize unequivocally for our actions and although we cannot undo what we have done; we can show our respect for those who serve us."

The company will be making a donation to the Royal British Legion and will contact the Help for Heroes charity 'with a view to supporting them in the 2019/20 wedding fayre season'.

They said: "This is by no means a gesture to compensate for our actions but hopefully the donations will go some way in to turning a negative into a positive whilst at the same time benefiting those people who have served our country."

Lucy Ashworth, mayor of Arundel, said: "The town hall was pleased to receive an apology from the company. It was quickly dealt with and lessons have been learned from this.

"We take great pride in how we keep our war memorial, and make that area really special for both residents and visitors to the town. To have any notices up is completely disrespectful."