Residents are invited to remember the suffering and sacrifice of millions of people killed in genocides across the world including the Holocaust, at a commemoration service to mark Holocaust Memorial Day.

The event will take place at St John the Baptist Church, Peterborough, on Thursday January 25 at 12noon.

The Mayor of Peterborough, Councillor Nick Sandford will lead a civic procession from the Town Hall at around 11.40am to Cathedral Square.

Here, drama students from St Fisher Catholic High School in Park Lane, Peterborough, will perform a piece on the Guildhall, based on this year's Holocaust Memorial Day theme 'Fragility of Freedom' .

The procession and students will then move to St John's Church for the service at 12noon.

Following the service, the mayor will give an address before the commemoration concludes with the laying of a wreath at the Holocaust memorial in St John’s Square.

The event will be broadcast on the council's Facebook and YouTube channels for anyone who wants to watch it live.

Holocaust Memorial Day is commemorated worldwide on January 27 to remember the six million Jews killed in the Holocaust and the millions involved in genocides across the world. January 27 marks the liberation of Auschwitz-Birkenau, the largest Nazi death camp.

Peterborough, has for a number of years, held its own commemoration as a public and inter-faith act of remembrance.

Councillor Nick Sandford, said: "The events taking place in Peterborough give us all the chance to remember the victims of genocide.

"Holocaust Memorial Day is a significant and poignant event in the world's calendar providing the opportunity to reflect on the atrocities of the past and share their stories with future generations."

To find out more about Holocaust Memorial Day visit www.hmd.org.uk/what-is-holocaust-memorial-day/this-years-theme/