A KEIGHLEY councillor proposed that the town should host a special event to honour the efforts of the local emergency services.

The idea has been put forward by Cllr Barry Thorne, chairman of Keighley Town Council’s finance and audit committee.

He explained he was first inspired by an event of this kind which was staged in Manchester on September 9.

This was designed to recognise all those affected by last year’s terrorist bombing in Manchester.

Cllr Thorne said: “We already have a Keighley Armed Forces Day, which was started a few years ago to give people a chance to publicly recognise the work of Britain’s military.

“So I thought it would be good to do something in Keighley along those lines for the men and women who protect us in the fire, police and ambulance services.

“We’ve heard before in the news about how some firefighters and paramedics have been getting abused when out doing their job.

“This would be a good way in which to say ‘thank you’ to them for keeping us safe.”

Cllr Thorne noted the emergency services do a lot of work behind the scenes, that isn’t always widely known about.

He cited the preventative visits regularly carried out by firefighters to ensure properties have fully functioning fire alarms in place.

And he said Keighley-based emergency personnel are often called out to reinforce colleagues outside of this area whenever a major incident occurs.

He pointed out how Keighley’s firefighters were called to help tackle a massive moor fire outside Manchester this summer, and even more recently fought a large blaze in Shipley.

Cllr Thorne said his idea is still in its infancy, adding that he would first need to talk to other members of the town council to gauge their reaction.

But he said he was confident the proposal would attract a positive response.

Reacting this week to Cllr Thorne’s comments, Keighley MP John Grogan said: “Celebrating our emergency workers in Keighley sounds like a great idea.

“Every day of the year they are looking out for us and keeping us safe.”

West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service district commander for Bradford, Ben Bush, said: “We are touched that Keighley town councillors will be discussing this idea, which would be great recognition for the emergency service personnel working in the area.

“As a fire service we regularly receive great feedback from members of the public who appreciate our work, and an event where people can publicly show their support for their emergency services would no doubt be well received.”

Yorkshire Ambulance Service responded that it had not yet been approached about the proposal, so would not be commenting at this stage.