AN OTLEY church is preparing to hold a week of events to commemorate the end of the First World War - and a very special window.

The Bridge United Reformed Church's east window was installed in 1920 to remember the men from Otley who died in the 'Great War'.

This month the church, as part of a national programme of activities being held to mark the centenary of the Armistice, will present Flowers of the Field.

The event will run from Tuesday, September 25 to Sunday, September 30 and feature a daily, 10am to 4pm, flower festival plus:

*Otley Museum displays about the town and the war

*A 7.30pm concert by Otley Brass Band on Saturday, September 29

*Refreshments

*The Otley Howitzer Memorial Board

*A closing act of worship at 3pm on the Sunday.

The event is being supported by Otley Town Council and is open to all.

Publicity officer for The Bridge Church, Colin Whitaker, said: "The centrepiece of Flowers of the Field is the east window of the church which depicts the Nativity.

"This window was unveiled in April, 1920 and is a memorial to those who paid the supreme sacrifice in the First World War - and also a thanksgiving for the preservation of the lives of those who returned.

"It is believed to have been the first memorial in Otley for the Great War, as it was then known."

The window, which was recently cleaned and repaired, was a gift from Sir James Hastings Duncan - a former MP for what was then the Otley constituency - and Lady Duncan and their son, Hugh Stewart Duncan MC.

Mr Whitaker added: "There will be lots to see, including an exhibition of documents and photographs about the window and other areas of the church’s life during the war, including the Congregational Soldiers’ Institute and those from the church who served and died in the service of their country.

"In conjunction with Otley Museum and Archive Trust, their exhibition Legacies of War: Untold Otley Stories will also be on display.

"And the museum will be lending the church the Memorial Board for the Otley Howitzer Brigade, which was originally in the town’s Drill Hall.

"It is now part of the museum collection and has not been on display since the museum was forced to leave the Civic Centre when it closed in 2010."