HUNDREDS of people enjoyed a jam-packed day of outdoor fun in the sun to support Armed Forces Day.

The whole town came together to celebrate the work that the military and its different branches do for Swindon and the UK as a whole.

GWR Park was abuzz with activity on Saturday, with an impressive parade kicking things off before a minute's silence and act of remembrance which paid respects to the fallen.

Proud families watched and waved as young Ferndale Primary School pupils sang a medley of World War Two hits. This is not the first time the school has been involved in paying tribute to the armed forces - pupils created a display of footprints and poems for the anniversary of the D-Day landings earlier this year.

Dave Shepherd's great-niece Ruby and great-nephew Regan sang in the choir as he looked on with his mum Doreen.

Regan said: "I was a bit nervous but it was really fun." Ruby added: "Yeah, I really enjoyed it."

Dave said: "That was my favourite bit of the day, it was beautiful, then we sat on the grass watching all the displays and had a lovely time. We come to most events like this, they're brilliant and I hope they keep going.

"If we didn't have the armed forces then we wouldn't have anything, our country would be very different."

An array of vintage and military vehicles filled part of the park, a funfair with inflatables and rides filled another, and the emergency services stopped by to teach youngsters about the work they do and let them peek inside the vehicles they use.

Ellesse Northmore enjoyed the day with her partner Craig Finlayson, children and brother. She said: "My brother was in the army cadets so we've been to events like this before. It's important to thank them because they do so much for us."

Craig agreed: "We need to celebrate them and all public service workers for their effort not just in war but in everyday life. It's good for the kids to meet people from the army, the cadets and the fire service. Our eldest wants to join the army."

Stalls from every local military group gave guests the chance to learn about the training on offer and get an up-close look at displays of weapons and equipment.

The centre of the park hosted displays from the army cadets drill team, and the Gurkhas as well as performances by the Army Cadet Force band, Air Training Corps band, tae-kwon-do experts, Nepalese dancers, and the Chippenham Morris men.

The day concluded with a closing ceremony with garrison volunteers, a cadet march from the sea cadets and Air Cadet Corps.

Royal British Legion Swindon's Isobel Thompson organised it all with her team of volunteers. She said: "It took a lot of hard work to put this together but it all paid off. There's not many of us in the Swindon branch - we are always looking for volunteers.

"It was a fantastic day, there was a great atmosphere with brilliant turnout and the weather was lovely. I'm tired but very pleased, and people were very positive with their feedback which was nice to hear.

"This was all about saying thank-you to the armed forces for all the work they do because they are key to keeping the country safe and do a lot of humanitarian work here and overseas."