Remembrance Sunday is 8 November 2026. The town service starts at the War Memorial about 10.50am; roads round the Town Hall close 10am to midday for the march.

Remembrance Sunday falls on Sunday 8 November 2026, and Armistice Day on Wednesday 11 November. Tunbridge Wells Borough Council has not yet announced this year’s arrangements; in each of the last two years it did so on 29 October. The town’s service follows the same pattern every year, so here is what to expect, taken from the council’s own notices for 2025 and 2024, with the timings that changed between the two years marked.

The quick answer

The Service of Remembrance, Thanksgiving and Dedication takes place at the War Memorial outside the Town Hall on Mount Pleasant Road, starting at 10.50am in 2025 (10.45am in 2024), with the two-minute silence at 11am. Wreaths are laid, then a March Past with the Mayor taking the salute. Roads around the Town Hall may be closed from 10am until about midday and on-street parking is restricted. The service is live streamed on the council’s website. A Civic Event at Tunbridge Wells Cemetery follows at 12.45pm (Tunbridge Wells Borough Council, 29 October 2025).

The service at the War Memorial

The council’s 2025 notice describes the day as follows, and the 2024 notice is the same in every detail except the start time and the clergy (2025; 2024):

  • Everyone is invited. “All are invited to attend” is the council’s wording; there is no ticket.
  • Who takes part: the Mayor, representatives of the Royal British Legion and other local organisations. The Mayor’s Chaplain conducts the service, assisted in 2025 by the pastor of Pantiles Baptist Church and the Kent Wing Air Training Corps chaplain.
  • Wreaths are laid by the civic party, service organisations, political parties and local groups. Members of the public may also lay wreaths and a Wreath Marshal helps them do so.
  • Readings: in 2025 three primary-age pupils read poems they had written on remembrance, and the service paid tribute to the town’s last known local Second World War survivor and to other veterans who had died in the year.
  • March Past: after the wreaths, service and other organisations march past the memorial and the Mayor takes the salute from it.
  • Watch live: the service is streamed at twbc.online/remembrance.

The War Memorial stands in front of the Town Hall on Mount Pleasant Road, at the top of the town, a few minutes’ walk from the station.

Road closures and parking

The council’s notice for both years says there will be disruption to traffic in the town centre, “particularly in the area around the town hall”, that roads may be closed at times from 10am until approximately midday, and that on-street parking may be restricted. It does not name the roads. Expect the section of Mount Pleasant Road and Civic Way by the Town Hall to be the core of it, with the march forming up nearby. If you are driving in, the council car parks and their Sunday charges are on our parking page; the closures will also be listed on roadworks and travel once the 2026 order is published.

The Civic Event at the cemetery, 12.45pm

After the town service, at 12.45pm the Mayor attends a Civic Event at Tunbridge Wells Cemetery on Benhall Mill Road, laying wreaths at the four war memorials there. The first wreath goes on the Cross of Sacrifice in the Second World War Garden of Remembrance. All are welcome (council notice, 2025).

Armistice Day, Wednesday 11 November

Two short ceremonies, both open to all:

  • At the War Memorial at 10.55am (2025; 11am in 2024). The road is closed briefly and the two minutes’ silence is marked by the firing of maroons, which are loud.
  • At the VC Memorial Grove in Dunorlan Park, near the Bayhall Road entrance, at about 11.45am, where Royal British Legion members lay wreaths.

Elsewhere in the borough

The council’s notice says remembrance events also take place in towns and villages across the borough and points readers to local websites. Southborough, Paddock Wood, Cranbrook, Hawkhurst and the parishes each hold their own service at their own memorial, usually at 10.45am or 10.50am for the 11am silence. We will add the 2026 details for the larger ones as their councils and churches publish them.

What changes year to year, and what to check

  • The start time. 10.45am in 2024, 10.50am in 2025. Arrive by 10.30am to get a place with a view of the memorial.
  • The Mayor and chaplain. A new Mayor is elected each May and the chaplain changes with them.
  • The 2026 notice is expected in the last week of October, if the council keeps to its pattern. This page will be updated the day it appears, with the road closure order if one is published separately.

Also in November

The Saturday before Remembrance Sunday is Bonfire Night in this borough: Dunorlan Park and Benenden fireworks, 7 November. The Christmas Kick Off is the Saturday after: 14 November.

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