Heane was promoted to lieutenant colonel and given command of the 1st Infantry Battalion, which he took to the Western Front. On 23 July 1916, the battalion was committed to the line at Pozières, advancing through the town itself. Afterwards, Heane personally walked the whole front and carefully thinned out the line so that the minimum number of men would be exposed to the enemy artillery when it discovered their location. In the fighting, the 1st Battalion lost 13 officers and 473 other ranks, about half its strength. For his leadership at Pozières, Heane was made a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George.