Scout groups in Bradford are preparing for what could be their last ever St George’s Day parade, after the police told them it could no longer marshal the event for free.

Scouts have held a parade in the city to celebrate St George, the patron saint of Scouting, for decades.

But police have told them they can no longer oversee the march for free, as national guidelines have changed.

And Scout leaders said as they have no funds to pay a private company to do the job, this Sunday’s event will probably be their last.

At 11.40am on Sunday, the nearest Sunday to St George’s Day on Tuesday, marching bands will lead hundreds of flag-waving Scouts from City Hall to Bradford Cathedral for a special service, before they march back again.

This year’s event was saved by the Scouts’ district commissioner for Bradford South, Stewart Jessop, who used to work in the police. He managed to persuade kind-hearted volunteer Special Constables to oversee the parade on a one-off basis.

Deputy district commissioner Alison Walton said: “The police have always done it for free. The roads are not closed for very long, not even for half an hour really. The march doesn’t take long.

“I think it’s just with financial constraints in the police, they’ve decided it’s not one of the things they can do in the future.”

Mrs Walton said some other Scout groups in West Yorkshire had not been able to go ahead with their parades this year for the same reason.

She said: “They are trying to put on a fun day or something else instead but it hasn’t got quite the same meaning.

“The children love the marching, especially with the bands. They love it.

“It has gone on for absolutely years. Scouting started in 1907 and I bet it has gone on almost as many years.”

She said Scout leaders were waiting until after this year’s event to discuss whether there is any way the parade can be saved in future years.

Stalwart Scout leader Roger Hyde, of 18th Bradford South Queensbury Tryhards, said he had gone to about 40 of the marches over the years and would be sad to see them stop.

Mr Hyde, 70, who has been in the Scouting movement since he was eight, said he remembered they used to be held at Valley Parade football stadium in the 1950s.

He said: “I used to be proud, especially to see other groups with different- coloured neckerchiefs.”

Similar Scout parades are planned in Keighley and Saltaire on Sunday.

The Scouts’ Aire Valley district commissioner, Carolyn Driver, said the Saltaire parade was not facing any problems, mainly because it used quieter roads and didn’t need professional marshaling.

The parade will set off from Saltaire First School at 2.30pm to march to Saltaire United Reformed Church for a service, then march back again.

Mrs Driver said parents had been drafted in to help oversee the event.

In Keighley, Scouts will march from Sainsbury’s car park at 2.30pm, along Skipton Road and North Street to St Anne’s Catholic Church for a service there at 3pm.

Keighley district commissioner Jeanette Young said their march was not facing any problems, as they marshaled their own event, with support from the Council’s road closure team and Police Community Support Officers. A spokesman for West Yorkshire Police said traffic management responsibilities had transferred from the police to event organisers, in line with the Traffic Management Act of 2004 and Home Office guidelines.

He said: “We informed organisers in 2012 that it was unlikely that the police would be responsible for the traffic management of the St George’s Day parade in 2013 and that they would need to look at how the event could take place without police involvement.

“This would not negate a police presence, as at any event there is a strong likelihood of a Neighbourhood Police involvement.

“In recognition of the value of organisations such as the Scouts, every effort will be made to support them. In this instance, the Special Constabulary have been arranged and provided through Bradford South Police.”