Remembering Lives Lost and Injured on Warwickshire’s roads

Warwickshire Road Safety Partnership is inviting the public to a memorial service to ‘Remember the lives lost and injured on Warwickshire’s roads’ at St Mary’s Church, Warwick, between 2.30pm and 4.30pm on Sunday 20 November 2022 – the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims (#WDoR2022). 

The service will also be live streamed on Facebook (please search @stmaryswarwick on Facebook).  

The church will open from 2.30pm to provide the opportunity for anyone who would like to light a candle and take some time for silent reflection.  

Open to all faiths, the service, led by Canon Peter Holliday, will start promptly at 3pm and last no longer than one hour. 

The service will include:    

Introduction of the World Day of Remembrance led by Canon Peter Holliday  

Songs and Hymns   

A reading from Chair of the Warwickshire Road Safety Partnership Philip Seccombe 

A minute’s silence led by Canon Peter Holliday  

Senior Family Liaison Officer Karen Powell speaking on behalf of victims    

Police force Chaplain Matthew Hopley speaking on behalf of the emergency services  

Closing remarks from Canon Peter Holliday   

We welcome all those who are able to attend.  However, if you are unable to attend the service in person but would like to remember someone on the #WDOR2022 a Remembrance Service ‘toolkit’ is available on our website (https://warksroadsafety.org/warwickshireremembers/)  with information and readings you can choose from to create your own service of remembrance at a time and place that suits you. The toolkit also includes text and images that could be used in a newsletter and to share on social media.  

We understand how important it is never to forget the lives lost and injured on our roads and that’s why Warwickshire Road Safety Partnership has also created an online space for you to leave a tribute.  This can be anonymous if you wish.  Please do what’s right for you. (https://warksroadsafety.org/warwickshireremembers/)    

Warwickshire Remembers provides an online space to visit whenever you want from a mobile or computer to see your tribute and remember your loved one.  By posting a tribute you are also helping to raise awareness of the long-term consequences of a collision. 

Sheila Vale’s life totally changed when she was left paralysed after being hit by a car while walking her dog in October 2019.   This moving video of Sheila Vale from Studley was filmed last year telling her story of recovery after she suffered these life-changing injuries. Warwickshire Road Safety Partnership Remembers 2021  We will also be sharing Sheila’s story on social media using #WDOR2022 

This is just part of the work being done in Warwickshire to remember those lives lost and injured on our roads. At the service, we also plan to unveil designs for a permanent memorial, and these will be available for you to view if you wish.  

In Warwickshire in 2021, 15 (2019, 34) people lost their lives and 215 people (2019, 282) were seriously injured in road traffic collisions.  Globally, road traffic crashes are a leading cause of death among young people, and the main cause of death among those aged 15–29 years. Source: Brake  

Philip Seccombe, Chair of WRSP and Police and Crime Commissioner for Warwickshire said: “The World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims, on 20 November provides an opportunity to raise awareness of the magnitude and impact that road traffic collisions have on society. It is still a sad fact that far too many people are killed or suffer life-changing injuries on our roads each year.   

“The service allows people from all backgrounds, faiths and beliefs who have been affected by a tragedy on our roads to come together and have a moment for reflection. It also allows the wider community of Warwickshire to show solidarity and support for those who have been bereaved. 

 “The event also acts as a reminder to us that all deaths and injuries on our roads can be prevented and that we all have a responsibility to use the highway network safely. Warwickshire Road Safety Partnership has set a target of halving all road casualties in the county by 2030 and, ultimately, we want to get to a position where no-one suffers the loss of a loved-one on our roads. That will need everyone to play their part and become safer road users and as a Partnership we are working hard to achieve this.” 

The service will also be attended by representatives from key partners and  Warwickshire’s civic leaders have been invited.  

Please follow us online @WarwickshireRoadSafety (Facebook) @WarksRoadSafety (Twitter) to find out about the work we are doing to reduce the number of people killed and seriously injured on our roads by 50% by 2030.  You can also visit our website www.warksroadsafety.org  The hashtag #WDoR2022 is being used worldwide to support the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims and if you search this on social media you will see a wide variety of posts including ours. 

Photo: Sheila Vale