Legislative History: Adopted September 19, 2017 (By-law No. CPOL.-114-366); Amended July 24, 2018 (By-law No. CPOL.-114(b)-417); Amended June 11, 2019 (By-law No. CPOL.-114(c)-158); Amended August 10, 2021 (By-law No. CPOL.-114(d)-247); Amended October 5, 2021 (By-law No. CPOL.-114(e)-319); Amended September 26, 2023 (By-law No. CPOL.-114(f)-268)
Last Review Date: September 26, 2023
Service Area Lead: City Clerk
1. Policy Statement
1.1 This policy sets out the requirements for the flying of flags at City Hall.
2. Definitions
2.1 Not applicable.
3. Applicability
3.1 This policy shall apply to any person or organization seeking to fly a flag at City Hall.
4. The Policy
4.1 Flags on the Community Flag Pole
a) The following flags shall be permitted to be flown at City Hall on the Community Flag Pole installed at the northwest corner of City Hall, facing Wellington Street:
i) the Canadian flag at such times as there is no other approved flag displayed
ii) an appropriate flag on the occasion of a visiting dignitary, on the day of the dignitary’s visit to London City Hall, as a gesture of respect and friendship.
iii) the flag of a nation on its national day, provided that:
(1) the nation has active diplomatic relations with Canada;
(2) the flag is official and is recognized by the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development;
(3) the requesting organization follows all policies prescribed in this policy at least 4 weeks prior to the national day, on an annual basis; and
(4) requests to use the community flagpole for flying the flag of a nation will be confirmed on a first come first served basis.
iv) to celebrate achievement, the flag of a charitable or non-profit organization to help increase public awareness of their programs and activities; an organization that has achieved national or international distinction or made a significant contribution to the community, or an organization that has helped to enhance the City of London in a positive manner;
v) the “Every Child Matters Flag” to be flown on September 30th of each year to recognize the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (National Orange Shirt Day); and
vi) the “Our London Family” flag will be flown at City Hall on June 6 each year.
b) The following guidelines shall be observed for the flying of flags permitted under 4.1 a) iv):
i) the organization’s flag will fly in connection with a particular event by an organization;
ii) no flags of commercial, religious or political organizations shall be permitted, except as otherwise provided under s.4.1;
iii) no flags of a group or organization whose undertakings or philosophy are contrary to City of London policies or by-laws, or espouse hatred, violence or racism shall be permitted;
iv) organizations shall be required to submit requests for their organization’s flag to fly on an annual basis;
v) a flag shall be flown for a period of up to one week, or for the duration of the associated event, whichever is less;
vi) flags shall only be changed and lowered on those business days that City Hall is open; and
vii) requests to use the community flagpole will be confirmed on a first come first served basis.
4.2 Canadian Flag at Half-Mast
The following guidelines shall be observed for the half-masting of the Canadian flag at City Hall:
i) the flying of the Canadian flag at half-mast denotes a period of official mourning or commemoration;
ii) the City of London will fly the Canadian flag on the at half-mast in the event of a death or to commemorate a solemn occasion. The Canadian flag will be lowered at the direction of the Mayor. In consultation with the Mayor, the City Clerk will provide instruction to lower the Canadian flag on the Flag Pole;
iii) the position of the Canadian flag when flying at half-mast will depend on its size, the length of the mast and its location; but as a general rule, the centre of the Canadian flag shall be exactly half-way down the mast;
iv) the official period of mourning is defined as the day of passing until the day of the funeral; and,
v) the Canadian flag will be flown at half-mast to commemorate the following occasions:
| Date | Occasion |
| April 28 | National Day of Mourning for Persons Killed or Injured in the Workplace |
| June 6 | Our London Family |
| August 9 | Peacekeepers' Day |
| Last Sunday in September | National Peace and Police Officers’ Memorial Day |
| November 11 | Remembrance Day* *Half-masting shall occur at 11:00 a.m. or according to the prescribed order of service at the Cenotaph. |
| December 6 | National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women |
4.3 Flags over the Back Entrance of City Hall
a) The following flags shall be permitted to be flown at City Hall on the flag poles over the back entrance of City Hall facing Reginald Cooper Square:
- the flags of all the provinces and territories and the Canadian Flag are hung, in order of confederation, over the back entrance facing Reginald Cooper Square. The Canadian Flag is hung as per the standards outlined in the National Flag of Canada Etiquette issued from the Federal Government.
b) The precedence for flag order (from left to right) as per the Position of Honour is as follows:
- the National Flag of Canada;
- the flags of other sovereign nations in alphabetical order (if applicable);
- the flags of the provinces of Canada (in the order in which they joined Confederation); and,
- the flags of the territories of Canada (in the order in which they joined Confederation).
c) The flags are displayed in the spring and removed before winter.
4.4 Flags over the Front Entrance of City Hall
a) The following flags shall be permitted to be flown at City Hall on the flag over the front entrance of City Hall:
- flags deemed by the City Clerk to be in accordance with the flag etiquette of Canada as established by Heritage Canada (restricted to the flag of the City of London, Canadian provinces, the Canadian flag, the personal flags and standards of the Royal Family and the Governor General and the Lieutenant Governors throughout Canada, the Royal Union flag, and the flags of the United Nations, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization and the Commonwealth).
4.5 Flags in City Hall
a) As an annual observance to recognize the anniversary of the London Township Treaty, the five signatory First Nations (Chippewas of the Thames First Nation, Chippewas of Kettle and Stoney Point First Nation, Walpole Island First Nation, Aamjiwnaang First Nation and Caldwell First Nation) shall be invited to have their flags displayed on September 7th of each year, in City Hall. In the event that September 7th falls on a day on which City Hall is closed, the flags shall be displayed on the first day prior to September 7th that City Hall is open for business.
4.6 General
a) The City Clerk will administer the policy for the flying of flags at City Hall.
b) The following guidelines shall apply to resolving conflicts arising from this policy:
i) conflicts between the dates requested for flags to be flown by two or more organizations or nations on the Community Flag Pole shall be settled in favour of the organization which first made its request; and,
ii) in the event that a request appears to be in conflict with any of the criteria outlined in this policy the Mayor, in consultation with the City Manager’s Office, or designate, may use discretion to approve or deny a community flag request. The Mayor’s decision will be final.