newsletter - RoadPeace

RoadPeace
spring 2010
dangernewsletter
issue 29
Supporting crash victims, reducing road

In this issue
❚ Dedication 2
❚ Letter and ‘News from the office’ 3
❚ Support 4
❚ Remembrance 5
❚ Collision investigation 6
❚ Criminal prosecution 7
❚ Road danger reduction 8
❚ Europe and beyond 9
❚ Local groups 10
❚ Funds 11–12
About this newsletter
Contributions from members in the
form of letters, testimonies, news
stories, poems and photographs are very
welcome.
Deadline for contributions to the next
issue: 3 September 2010.
Printed on non-chlorine-bleached and
non-wood based paper by Russell Press,
Bulwell Lane, Nottingham NG6 0BT
THIS NEWSLETTER IS DEDICATED TO
Shane Baker 1988 – 2007
Shane was a brother to many not just to his only sibling, George.
He was a trusted loyal companion to many friends, work colleagues
and his greater family.
Shane always tried to live life to the full, with a great big smile on
his face. He was a comedian and impersonator, he loved to laugh
and entertain. He also enjoyed sport especially football and was an avid Leicester
City fan, a highlight was leading out his favourite team as a mascot.
As Shane grew up, he became a fine young man, with a finely tuned interest in
fashion – he always stood out from the crowd.
Shane was a kind and thoughtful person. He embraced a hard-working ethic,
achieving an electrical apprenticeship and was a very well-thought-of colleague.
The death of Shane has left an immeasurable void in the lives of the people he
knew and loved, and those that knew and loved him too.
John Hennessy 1940 – 2008
On a beautiful sunny morning on 11 May 2008, three friends took
a bike ride to Settle, only two of them returned – John was hit
head on by a car and died instantly…nothing has ever been the
same since…There wasn’t chance to say goodbye to John and he
will never have the chance to ride that ride again.
To say that John is missed is a massive understatement, his wit, charm and good
humour can never be replaced. He lived life to the extreme and expected his
friends and family to do the same. John will never be forgotten.
About RoadPeace
Join RoadPeace today
Individual and joint/family members get
regular newsletters, invitations to
events, information and publications.
Membership is by donation. There is no
set fee.
Associate members (companies,
councils, organisations etc).
Businesses: £50.
Charities and voluntary groups: £20.
Member of the Telephone Helpline
Association
RoadPeace
Shakespeare Business Centre
245a Coldharbour Lane
London SW9 8RR
Email info@roadpeace.org
Website www.roadpeace.org
Helpline 0845 4500 355
Tel 020 7733 1603
Registered charity 1087192
RoadPeace is Britain’s national charity
for road traffic victims. It was set up in
1992 in response to the overwhelming
need for a national organisation to
support bereaved families and injured
victims of road crashes, and to draw
attention to their lack of rights, the
disregard of their needs and the casual
attitudes taken towards them.
RoadPeace works with many
organisations concerned with road
victim, bereavement and injury issues.
The work of RoadPeace involves
direct support for bereaved and injured
people through a national helpline, and
providing guides that explain legal
procedures following a crash.
RoadPeace supports road danger
reduction and the promotion of
transport policies which give greater
consideration to vulnerable road users
and the environment.
RoadPeace is also a member of FEVR,
the European Federation of Road
Traffic Victims, which has United
Nations consultative status.
The information we gather is used to
educate and inform the public and
relevant agencies ranging from
government departments to individual
coroners.
RoadPeace national committee
❚ Brigitte Chaudhry (MBE), President/Founder
❚ Cynthia Barlow, Chair
❚ Jeff Baker, Vice Chair
❚ Sue Baker
❚ Pauline Fielding
❚ Peter Salter
❚ Agnes Saudrais-Hough
Local group coordinators
❚ Bristol and South West, Steve Duddell
❚ East Anglia, Bridget Wall and Elizabeth
Voysey
❚ Lancashire, Maria Hodgson
❚ Liverpool, Margaret Highton and Pauline
Fielding
❚ Manchester, June Webb
Internet memorials
Alastair Hanton
Patrons
❚ Nicholas Atkinson QC
❚ Colin Ettinger
❚ Dr Mayer Hillman
❚ Ken Livingstone
❚ Dr Noreen Tehrani
❚ Harry Trusted
❚ Professor Ian Roberts
❚ Professor John Whitelegg
❚ John Stewart
❚ Dr Narinder Kapur
2 newsletter

Letter
Dear friends,
WE are pleased to bring you our Spring newsletter with recent news from many of our members and supporters, as
well as updates from the justice and transport sectors. The front cover features the local memorial organised by our
South West group and this is the first time that funding has been raised by a local group and full credit is owed to
them for their hard work over several years.
Our pioneering work on behalf of road crash victims and those concerned about road danger continues to be
recognised and encouraged. This is reflected in the contents of this newsletter, including the just announced grant
from the Ministry of Justice for our Resilience Support Programme, the UN ECE Road Safety Working Group
commending our work highlighting the importance of collision investigation, and an invitation to give evidence to Sir
Peter North for his review into drink and drug driving.
A huge thank you to those who have already responded to our Spring Appeal. RoadPeace is fortunate to have
such a dedicated membership that allows us to remain independent but we are keen to grow as there is so much
more that could be done. If you would still like to respond to the appeal there is still time and your support will help
our future projects. Over the next few months, in addition to launching the South West Memorial, we will be
organising a Collision Investigation conference in London. This is a pilot and we hope to be able to organise it in
other regions.
Our AGM and Open Day is scheduled for July 2, 2010 at the Diana Memorial Fund office in central London. An
invitation and agenda will be sent in May but please reserve the date now. ■
Sincerely,
Amy Aeron-Thomas
Executive Director
News from the office . . .
WE were delighted to launch our new and improved website
earlier this year which can be viewed at www.roadpeace.org.
The site has been structured to reflect what RoadPeace offers
to its members and the public with sections on Finding
Support, Working for Change and Remembering as well as the
usual website information about the charity’s history and how
to get involved.
On the home page you will find a ‘real time’ counter that
shows how many people globally have lost their lives in a road
crash this year, which sadly has to be updated every 25 seconds.
Our information guides are now easy to access from the home
page and the Get Involved section includes details on how to
become a member and plenty of ideas for fundraising.
The images used on the site powerfully reflect the impact that
road crashes have upon people’s lives. We are very grateful to
two artists for permission to use photographs from their
exhibitions: Paul Wenham-Clarke – ‘When Lives Collide’ and
Eros Mauroner – ‘Empty Rooms’. There is still more to be done,
including developing the local groups pages and adding to the
information guides, but we hope you like the new site. ■
‘When Lives Collide’, Paul Wenham-Clarke
‘Empty Rooms’, Eros Mauroner
spring 2010 3

letters Support
Ministry of Justice funds
Resilience Programme
WE are delighted to announce that our Resilience Building Support Programme is to be continued. The Ministry of
Justice (MOJ) has agreed to fund the programme for those bereaved in London and the Home Counties where a
driver is being prosecuted for causing the fatal crash. This programme will be run in Autumn 2010 and we will
spend the next months publicising the programme among the police forces involved (Met Police, Surrey, Thames
Valley, Essex, Kent, Hertfordshire and Buckinghamshire) and training additional therapists.
The Resilience programme was successfully piloted in Autumn 2009 with funding from Awards for All. RoadPeace
Patron, Noreen Tehrani, devised this programme, based on what had been developed for victims of natural
disasters. The six week support programme involves developing bereavement coping skills, rather than counselling
or one-to-one support. Another key feature to the programme is the contact with others who have experienced
similar tragedies. This has proved to be very important. Most of the participants are still in touch with one another,
three couples meet regularly at the weekend and share Sunday lunches. The trauma techniques were appreciated,
and different tools suited different people, but the group support was deemed as invaluable: “We have made lifelong
friends as a result of these meetings and are helping each other through the darkest of days”.
Fifteen people participated in the pilot and the Met Police attended the final session to hear their feedback. They
supported our proposal to the MOJ and Transport for London has kindly agreed to host the support programme
again in their offices at St James Park, Central London.
We are actively seeking further funding to continue this programme in London and to expand to other regions. But
if you know of any national or local grant-making trusts that would be interested in funding an initiative like this
please let us know. ■
National Victims Service
THE National Victims Service was launched in January. The
government have linked up with Victim Support to deliver the
service. The first stage is concentrating on victims of homicide –
those bereaved through murder and manslaughter. RoadPeace
has lobbied for victims of road crashes to be included in this
category and from April 2010 those bereaved through criminal
acts of driving will be eligible for support from this service. We
are pleased that road crash victims are recognised as being in
need of the same services as others bereaved suddenly and
traumatically through no fault of their own. However we look
forward to a day where all road crash victims receive
acknowledgement and support to help cope with their loss.
FLO survey
ROADPEACE continues to work closely with Family Liaison
Officers and is undertaking a survey of best practice in all 43
forces. This is giving us useful information on how different
forces approach the investigation process and how
deployment of FLOs varies from force to force – and it does!
Ursula Saunders, RoadPeace Support Services Manager,
took part in the Met Police’s annual FLO training day in
February and spoke about the work of RoadPeace and the
resilience building programme.
New guides and translations
WE have new guides for bereaved families and the summaries
of our Road Death Investigation Manual for Bereaved families
are now available in Polish, Hindi, Bengali, Gujarati and Urdu.
New Victims’ Commissioner
JACK Straw has announced that Louise Casey will be the new
Victims’ Commissioner. This is an independent role, building
on the work done by Sara Payne, the Victims Champion, who
produced a report at the end of last year.
New helpline volunteers
WE have a core of very dedicated helpline volunteers who
provide emotional support and practical information to our
callers. The Helpline is open Monday to Friday from 9am to
5pm. Helpline volunteers can be trained on a one-to-one basis
and we have an annual training/update day in mid-July. If you
are interested in being on our helpline, or coming back to the
helpline, then do please get in touch. A few hours on a
regular basis is always very much appreciated.
ursula.saunders@roadpeace.org
Barts and the London Bereavement
Conference
ROADPEACE has been invited to speak on ‘Unexpected
Deaths’ at the 6th Annual Barts and the London NHS Trust
Bereavement Conference in June. We had previously met
bereavement officers at the Whitechapel Hospital who had
been interested in our resilience work and RoadPeace’s
in-depth perspective on the uniquely traumatic nature of a
road death.
4 newsletter

Remembrance
World Day of Remembrance
THE date of the next World Day of Remembrance for Road
Traffic Victims is Sunday 21 November 2010. The theme of
World Day of Remembrance activities around the world this year
will be “remembering lives lost and broken”. This calls for
recognition and reflection upon the many ways in which lives
are cut short or severely hindered because of a road death or
road injury.
Every year over 30 services are held in cathedrals and churches
throughout the UK and an increasing number of other nonreligious
remembrance activities take place. We hear from many
people who have attended or organised WDR activities and it is
clear how much support and recognition this day brings.
This is the 18th year of the World Day of Remembrance and
we encourage you to think about ways in which you can take
part. We are keen to expand the level of access to WDR activities
to offer as many people as possible a variety of ways of
remembering at a location near them. For many people there is
of course a link between remembrance and religious services but
people remember in many ways and we are keen that WDR
includes non-religious events as well.
Recent activities have included public health lectures, school
activities, art exhibitions, concerts, marches and events held in
prisons. We encourage you to engage your local emergency
services, police family liaison officers, MP’s and road safety teams
in World Day of Remembrance activities.
Please let us know if you are planning an event this year. We
also invite you to write a testimony reflecting a life that you
know that has been lost or broken. This could be shared at a
local event or sent to the London office addressed to Susanna
Wright or by email to susanna.wright@roadpeace.org. ■
From left to right: Inspector Nick Semper, Debbie
Roberts and Special Constable Bill Morris, West Mercia
Constabulary, Hereford Division; Jackie Boys, Social
Responsibility Officer, Hereford Diocese/RoadPeace
facilitator; Sgt Tony Jones, West Mercia Constabulary,
Hereford Division; Shelagh Callaghan, SR Projects
Officer/RoadPeace facilitator; Bob Haynes, Traffic
Management Advisor, West Mercia Constabulary,
Hereford Division.
RoadPeace Wood
THIS year’s ceremony of remembrance at RoadPeace Wood
will be held on Saturday 14 August at 2pm. RoadPeace
Wood is at the National Memorial Arboretum, Alrewas,
Staffordshire. The ceremony is open to all and will take place
in the chapel and alongside the trees of RoadPeace Wood. If
you would like to sponsor a tree in RoadPeace Wood please
contact the National Memorial Arboretum directly (this takes
about six weeks). (www.thenationalarboretum.org.uk)
Internet Memorial Site
WE hope to be launching a newly developed internet
memorial site later this year. It will build on the existing model,
which offers the opportunity to write and share memorials
and testimonies, but it will have a greater capacity for
personalised pages and links through to other remembrance
and support activities.
(www.roadpeace.org/remembering/internet_memorial)
Roadside memorial policies
AS part of the recent
telephone survey with
FLO’s we have been
gathering information
about the different
policies that local
authorities have for
roadside memorials.
Please let Ursula know
if you have any
concerns about your
local roadside
memorial policy or if
you can add any
information.
ursula.saunders@
roadpeace.org or
020 7733 1603.
spring 2010 5

Collision
letters
investigation
Coroners and road death investigation
OVER 80% of families bereaved by a road crash will experience an inquest, and the police collision investigation
report will be prepared for the coroner. The Ministry of Justice has recently launched a consultation on the
secondary legislation of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009 in ‘Reform of the Coroner System–Next Stage,
Preparing for implementation’. (www.justice.gov.uk/consultations/reform-coroner-system.htm )
Training needs of coroners and their staff are one of the key areas to be considered. RoadPeace will continue
to argue the case for specialised training in road death investigation and disclosure. We will also repeat our call
for a specific traffic death verdict instead of the current situation where they are lost under ‘accidental’ or in
narrative verdicts. The consultation closes 1 July 2010. Please check our website for our response.
amy.aeron.thomas@roadpeace.org ■
Collision investigation in London
WITH a budget of £2.3 million, the Met Police has a total of
48 collision investigators responsible for investigating fatal and
near fatal collisions. Between April 2008 and March 2009,
they investigated 215 fatal collisions which resulted in 76
charges and summons.
They also carried out 649 serious injury (life threatening)
investigations. This accounts for one-fifth of serious injury
collisions reported in London with all other reported injury
collisions (some 22,000) being investigated by the Traffic
Criminal Justice Unit based at Sidcup.
Budget cuts have begun to be felt with the closure of the
Central London Collision Investigation Unit based at Euston.
This means a longer response time in investigating fatal and
near fatal crashes in Central London as collision investigators
have to travel from the outer London bases. The Met Police
have also just received a ‘poor’ rating for road safety from Her
Majesty’s Inspector of Constabulary.
What makes a good investigation?
WHAT makes a good investigation is the theme of a
conference that RoadPeace is hosting in September. The focus
will be on injury collisions involving vulnerable road users in
London with sessions dedicated to pedestrian, cyclist and
motorcyclist collisions. This conference is being organised in
partnership with CTC, London Cycling Campaign, Living
Streets, and the British Motorcycle Federation, with assistance
from leading personal injury solicitors firms.
Cyclist K/SI collisions
The DfT has recently published a report by TRL on ‘Collisions
Involving Cyclists of Britain’s Roads: Establishing the Causes’.
This analysed cyclist K/SI collisions from 2005-2007. The
analysis focused more on the circumstances than causes and
did not include any prosecution data. It did report that ‘failed
to look properly’ was attributed to car drivers in 57% and to
the cyclist in 43% of serious collisions. Police were more likely
to attribute the cause of collision to a child cyclist. The
research concluded that:
“Taking measures to reduce vehicle speeds and
collisions with HGVs (particularly in cities) will clearly
be important in reducing the number of cyclists who
are killed and seriously injured.”
The report can be downloaded from the TRL website.
www.trl.co.uk/online-store/reports-publications/
Best practice in collision investigation
THE Institute of Traffic Accident Investigators (ITAI) is a charity
dedicated to improving collision investigation. ITAI’s council
has decided that it should develop best practice guidelines in
collision investigation and has launched a working party for
this aim.
RoadPeace has campaigned for over 12 years for national
standards and welcomes this move. ITAI has stressed that
“Best practice guidelines are not intended to be used as a
stick to thrash a practitioner who has deviated from the
guidelines”. RoadPeace appreciates that these are only
guidelines, given the independence of each police service and
the shrinking police budgets. But guidelines will be a major
step forward and RoadPeace looks forward to contributing to
the ITAI best practice working party.
CRASH update
The DfT’s £5 million new electronic system, Collision
Recording And SHaring (CRASH), has been delayed with pilots
in three areas now planned for early 2011 with national rollout
by 2012.
6 newsletter

Criminal
prosecution
Causing death by driving
IN 2008, there were 2341 fatal crashes involving 4088 drivers, of whom 1506 died. Among the 2582 drivers that
survived, 257 were convicted of Causing Death by Dangerous Driving, including 31 young offenders. The most
common custodial sentence was between three and five years.
Causing death by driving custodial sentences (2008)
Causing death Total ≤6 mths >6mths & >12mths & >18mths & >2yrs & >3yrs & >5yrs
by... ≤ 12mths ≤ 18mths ≤ 2yrs ≤ 3yrs ≤ 5yrs
Dangerous Driving 236 1 12 19 21 30 91 62
Careless Driving whilst
Under the Influence 46 – – 3 3 9 24 7
Although 430 people are estimated to have died in drink related crashes in 2008, many of these fatalities were the
drink drivers themselves. While 71 drivers were prosecuted for Causing Death by Careless Driving Under the Influence
of Drink or Drugs, 49 were convicted, four of whom were young offenders. The conviction rate for the two charges
above was 68%.
The two new charges of causing death by driving did not come into use until mid August. By the end of 2008, only one
driver had been convicted of Causing Death by Driving Unlicensed, Disqualified or Uninsured and two had been
convicted of Causing Death by Careless Driving. ■
Dangerous and careless driving
IN 2008, 4424 drivers were convicted of Dangerous Driving.
Of these, 56% (2495) were convicted in the Magistrates
Court with 173 imprisoned with 109 for more than three
months. The average fine was £476.
Of the 2,764 drivers prosecuted at the Crown Court, 1,929
were convicted. Of these, 321 received a community order
and 468 a suspended sentence. Another 165 were sent to a
Young Offender’s Institute and 829 were imprisoned. Of the
1212 sent to prison, 311 received six months or less, 609
between 6-12 months, and 253 between 12-18 months. Only
39 received between 18-24 months.
Another 18,538 drivers were convicted of Careless Driving
in 2008 with an average fine of £220. There has been no
further notice on the government’s proposal to make Careless
Driving a fixed penalty notice with a fine of £60.
Vehicle confiscation of drink drivers
A new scheme in Scotland has the police confiscating the
vehicles of extreme and repeat drink drivers. Introduced
during the Christmas period, the police have decided to
continue it. Previously, vehicle confiscation has been primarily
used with uninsured vehicles but RoadPeace has called for it
to be extended to impaired and aggressive drivers, as these
drivers pose a greater death threat than uninsured drivers.
Code for Crown Prosecutors
THE CPS is updating its Code for Crown Prosecutors. It was
last reviewed in 2004. The CPS consultation asked if the
evidential stage and public interest factors were explained
clearly. RoadPeace has argued that the evidential stage should
include clarifying if there is lack of evidence as to any criminal
behaviour and when there is evidence that no criminal
behaviour was involved, two quite different situations.
Corporate manslaughter
THE Sentencing Guidelines Council has issued guidance calling
for stiff penalties for corporate manslaughter. Fines are to be
seldom below £500,000 and may be millions of pounds. No
company has yet to be convicted of corporate manslaughter
following a road death.
Transparency lacking
PUBLIC service agreement 24
“Deliver a more effective, transparent and responsive
criminal justice system for victims and the public”.
Criminal Justice Strategic Plan for 2008-2011
Transparency is greatly needed with the legal outcome of
injury collisions. Under the CPS Director’s Charging Guidance,
the police have the authority to make the charging decision in
injury collisions, except for those where a Dangerous Driving
charge may apply and these must be approved by the CPS. Yet
there is no central monitoring of the charging decision in injury
collisions, with no records kept of the number of injury collisions
involving a Dangerous Driving or a Careless Driving charge.
Short prison sentences...
...are ineffective according to the House of Commons Home
Affairs Committee report on the Government’s Approach to
Crime Prevention. “Witnesses, including government
ministers, were unanimous in their view that short
prison sentences do not allow time for effective
rehabilitation interventions to take place. Around 60%
of adults serving less than one year are convicted of at
least one offence in the year after release”.
As shown above, most of the custodial sentences (70%)
given to dangerous drivers are less than one year.
spring 2010 7

Road danger
letters
reduction
True casualty toll
FOR the first time official figures have been
produced that reflect the true number of
road casualties. In order to be the official
national provider of road casualty statistics,
the DfT is now required by the UK Statistics
Authority to develop an estimate of the
Road traffic casualties (2008)
Police reported Central estimate (95% CI) Adjustment factor
All road casualties 230,905 800,000 (680k-920k) 3.5
Seriously injured 26,034 80,000 ( 40k-120k) 3.1
Children casualties 21,996 80,000 ( 40k-120k) 3.6
Source: DfT (2009), Reported Road Casualties Great Britain: 2008 Annual Report
true toll after adjusting for under-reporting. The estimates were developed after a comparison of police data, hospital
data, and findings from the National Travel Survey which includes questions on collision involvement. These estimates
are included in the annual report which has now been renamed the Reported Road Casualties Great Britain.
For one year, starting in October 2009, the British Crime Survey (BCS) will also include questions on collision involvement.
As this is a much larger sample size, the findings should be more reliable. RoadPeace first called for this in October 1998.
But no adjustment has yet to be made to the estimated cost to the country from crashes. RoadPeace will continue to
campaign for this as well as for road safety programmes and cost benefit evaluations to be based on the total number of
casualties, and not just the fraction reported to the police. ■
Speed watch
DfT Speed Limit Circular revision
THE DfT is revising its guidance on 20mph speed limits but has
already begun promoting greater user of 20mph schemes
without speed humps. The consultation stated DfT’s desire to
“encourage highway authorities to introduce, over time,
20 mph zones or limits into streets which are primarily
residential in nature and into town or city streets where
pedestrian or cyclist movements are high, such as around
schools, shops, markets, playgrounds, and other areas
where these are not part of any major through route”.
Many organisations, including RoadPeace, have called for
the exclusion of major through routes to be removed, with
local authorities allowed to decide for themselves if a 20mph
speed limit is appropriate on the main streets.
The shift in DfT policy was influenced by the preliminary
findings from Portsmouth and more evidence from London. In
Portsmouth a town-wide sign only 20mph limit resulted in
decreases of 7mph on roads that had average speeds of
24mph. In London, a study reported in the British Medical
Journal found casualties dropped by 42% after 20mph zones
were introduced. The researchers concluded that up to 700
casualties in London could be prevented with greater use of
20mph zones. This research was presented at a seminar cohosted
by RoadPeace and the London School of Hygiene and
Tropical Medicine in November, commemorating the World
Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims in 2009.
National strategy
THE Road Safety Strategy publication has been further delayed
and is now not expected until later in 2010. However in
February, the Active Travel Strategy was jointly launched by
the Transport Minister and the Public Health Minister. While
the main focus is on promoting cycling and walking, as could
be expected, there is little reference to what the report refers
to as the ‘Safety Question’ despite fear of traffic being a
leading reason why more people do not cycle.
Commercial vehicle speed limits
THE DfT is proposing to simplify speed limit rules for
commercial vehicles. It wants a 65mph limit for all buses,
minibuses and coaches with more than eight seats and a
60mph limit for vans and lorries over 3.5 tonnes. These
vehicles would be banned from using the right hand land of
the motorway.
North drink/drug driving review
SIR Peter North, who wrote the 1981 North Report on Road
Traffic Law, was tasked with conducting an independent
review into drink and drug driving for Lord Adonis, the
Transport Minister. He is to advise on changing the legal limit
for alcohol and penalties for any reduced limit, and the need
for new legislation to make drug driving an offence to drive
with a named substance in the body. RoadPeace was invited
to give oral evidence to Sir Peter North in February and we
highlighted the need for immediate driving bans of drink
drivers who have killed or injured. At present they are allowed
to continue driving until they are convicted, unless there is
evidence that they will re-offend.
London road safety woes
THE budget for road safety in London has been reduced, with
funding for safety cameras halved.
Jenny Jones,
London Assembly
Green Member
and Road Safety
Ambassador
under Mayor
Livingstone, has
warned that:
London road safety budget
2008/09 2009/10
TfL expenditure £16.9 £13.6
Borough expenditure £30.9 £29.2
Safety cameras £11.5 £5.5
Total £58.8 £49.3
“The (current) mayor is returning us to the worst days
of lawless roads, with safety cameras switched off,
traffic lights dismantled and little enforcement of the
rules of the road. London’s success in reducing road
casualties during the last decade is now under threat”.
8 newsletter

Europe and
beyond
Europe and beyond
An update from Brigitte Chaudhry, RoadPeace
founder and president and current president of the
European Federation of Road Traffic Victims
On behalf of the road victim organisations under its umbrella, including RoadPeace, FEVR
has lobbied for and welcomed many positive actions and plans in recent months.
Global
World Day of Remembrance for Road
Traffic Victims
The Decade of Action was supported by the UN General
Assembly in March. http://doc.un.org/DocBox/
docbox.nsf/GetAll?OpenAgent& DS=A/64/L.44/Rev.1
We stressed the proposals from
the NGO Brussels Declaration.
More information at
www.who.int/roadsafety/
ministerial_conference/ngo_
declaration_full.pdf
THIS Day was observed around the world with public
ceremonies, road safety conferences, seminars, tree planting
ceremonies, school and public assemblies.
Religious remembrance services remain popular and, since
2005, Catholic churches in Italy have been asked to include a
special prayer
“On the occasion of the Remembrance
Day we pray for those in authority who
have responsibility for the safety of the
public, that they promote more respect
for the life and safety of those who
travel”.
More information can be found at www.wdor.org/.
Moscow Declaration and UN
THE first Global Ministerial Conference on Road Safety
produced the Moscow Declaration, signed by 150 countries,
which called for a ‘Decade of Action for Road Safety 2011-
2020 www.who.int/roadsafety/ministerial_conference/
declaration_en.pdf.
Bloomberg Philanthropies announced a US$125 million
donation while the UK Department for International
Development greatly increased their contribution to road
safety with a £1.5 million pledge for the World Bank Global
Road Safety Facility.
Europe
EC fourth Road Safety Action
Programme
FEVR responded to the above consultation, representing the
road victim perspective, and encouraged its member
organisations to respond on behalf of road victims in their
respective countries. Together with colleagues from the FEVR
Board I also attended the second December conference in
Brussels on EC’s Road Safety Strategy for the next Decade.
ETSC serious injury concern
TO mark the World Day, the European Transport Safety
Council (ETSC) launched a paper calling for the EC to adopt a
higher reduction target for serious injuries in their 4th Road
Safety Action programme. ETSC included an interview with
me in this paper. www.etsc.eu/documents/copy_of_
PIN%20Flash%2015.pdf
UN ECE Road Safety Working Party
and Crash Investigation
Having appealed to this Working
Party for some years to include the
post crash areas, in particular
investigation, I was asked to submit a
paper on this topic for decision at the
22-24 March meeting in Geneva. At
the meeting the majority agreed to
include investigation – a greatly
positive and pleasing outcome! ■
spring 2010 9

letters Local groups
Local groups and activities
Updates from local groups and members
RoadPeace Lancashire
IN May 2009, Lancashire-based Simon Dobson and John
Monk set out for a bike ride like no other…between Lands
End and John O’Groats. They were minus their cycling pal
John Whitaker, who was killed a year earlier on 11 May 2008.
They rode in memory of John and to raise money for
RoadPeace, supported by their ever-faithful family and friends.
874 miles later, and pain in places they didn’t know existed,
Simon and John reached their final destination. John’s partner,
Sharon, knows that he was proud to call them his friends and
that this would have meant so very much to him. We join
Sharon in thanking them both.
The Lancashire group is again meeting regularly. They have
made contact with Lancashire County Council to explore its
plans for a policy on roadside memorials and are beginning to
make plans for World Day of Remembrance activities. The
group meet every two months with the next meeting on
22 May at 2pm. Contact Maria Hodgson on 01772 720279.
RoadPeace North West
CONGRATULATIONS to Pauline Fielding whose on-going
dedication and commitment to RoadPeace has been
recognised by the award of Community Champion for the
Wirral.
David Midmer, who gives regular presentations to driving
instructors, was invited to Altcourse Prison to talk to offenders
incarcerated for driving offences. The inmates wanted to raise
money for RoadPeace and organised a triathlon in March. Two
teams competed, led by fitness instructor Robbi Biddulph and
prison chaplain Martin Earl, who lost his brother in a road
crash. Fellow inmates, families and guards sponsored the
competitors and David worked really hard to get local and
national publicity and additional fundraising from the public.
This year’s Flower Laying Ceremony will be held again on
the steps of Liverpool Anglican Cathedral on 31 August,
marking the 13th anniversary of the death of Diana, Princess
of Wales. Contact Pauline Fielding on 0151 342 6381.
Top row: Danny, Gethin, Robbi Biddulph, Colin Smith
(Manager), Callum, Gary
Middle row: David, James, David Midmer, Phil Nolan (Assistant
Director), David, Martin Earl (Chaplain),
Bottom Row: Rob, Az, Keith.
From left to right: Simon Dobson and John Monk
RoadPeace Manchester
JUNE Webb is again organising for 20 people to take part in
this year’s Great Manchester Run on 16 May in aid of
RoadPeace. Good luck to all who are taking part. If you are in
Manchester that day, please support them.
June is also organising a remembrance ceremony at the
RoadPeace Memorial garden in Beswick on Friday 6 August.
This marks the tenth anniversay of the deaths of June’s
daughter, Jodie and her friend Joanne Greenwood. Contact
June Webb on 0161 273 7049.
RoadPeace South West
THREE years ago, the South West Group launched their
campaign to raise money and awareness for a local memorial
stone. Their efforts will be rewarded on Saturday 22 May
when the memorial stone (pictured on the front cover) will be
unveiled and dedicated to the lives lost and broken in road
crashes across the South West of England. Representatives
from the region’s police, emergency services, local authorities
and MP’s will take part in the ceremony to which all are
invited. It takes place at 11am at Lower Borough Walls, Bath
followed by refreshments. For more information contact
Susanna Wright on 020 7733 1603, susanna.wright@
roadpeace.org or visit www.roadpeace.org/involved/
local_groups/south_west.
10 newsletter

Funds
Fundraising
We are pleased to announce some good news following a recent focus on fundraising; we’ve
successfully renewed financial support from some existing trusts and sponsors, as well as
gaining new funding for forthcoming projects. Our thanks go to the following…
❚ Fentons solicitors – new supporters of our London conference 2010
❚ Irwin Mitchell solicitors – continuing support for our London conference 2010 and new support for our
information guides
❚ Kenneth Miller Trust – who have renewed their funding of the Support Services Manager for another year
❚ Ministry of Justice – a new grant which will fund the 2010 Resilience programme
We are very encouraged by our recent funding successes, especially in the current economic climate, but we
can not afford to be complacent. We are still seeking funds to secure our future as a campaigning organisation
and for areas of support work and remembrance. Although we are gaining increased recognition through our
work, there is still so much more to be done. If you have contact with any trusts, trustees, companies or
individuals that may be interested in supporting RoadPeace please do let us know. Projects that we are seeking
support for include:
❚ Development of internet memorial site
❚ World Day of Remembrance activities
❚ Case worker (national or regional)
❚ Further website development
❚ Road danger reduction campaigns – eg HGV/Cyclists
❚ Regional remembrance workshops.
Spring Appeal
IN March we launched our 2010 Spring Appeal, the first time
in over five years that we have asked our members for
donations in addition to their membership donations. As well
as raising much needed funds, we asked you to help us
increase our membership numbers by recruiting a friend or
family member to join us. Thank you to all of you who have
responded so far. We are still some way off our target so if
you have not yet done so but are able to, please do contribute
to our Spring Appeal. Details on how to help can be found on
our website. Look out for the update on how we’ve done in
the next newsletter.
Fuchsia Becky-Lou XX now available
IN the last newsletter we wrote about the Fuchsia Becky-Lou
XX, developed in memory of Amanda Hassell’s partner and
two children, Dick, Rebecca (15) and Lucy (12), who were
killed in October 2005. These beautiful plants are now
available to buy, and a percentage of the proceeds kindly
donated to RoadPeace. Order them directly from Thompson
Morgan on 0844 2485383 or at www.thompson-morgan.
com/info/plants/fuchsia-beckie-lou.
Legacies
THIS year we received a generous legacy donation left by a
RoadPeace member in recognition of the support and help
they received from us during a difficult time in their life.
If you able to leave a gift to RoadPeace in your will, however
large or small, you will be helping to ensure that future
generations will continue to have access to our services,
support and information following a road crash. More
information on legacy giving can be found on our website
http://roadpeace.org/involved/support_us/remember_us
or by contacting Susanna Wright for an informal and
confidential discussion.
spring 2010 11

letters Funds
Fundraising and donations
Thank you to all our members who join or renew their membership each year and give generously
through donations and Gift Aid. We receive minimal statutory funding and rely heavily on donations
from members and supporters to continue our work, so whatever you give really helps. Thank you.
We are continually inspired by your innovative and creative fundraising ideas, and we are touched
daily by the bravery, ingenuity and dedication that keeps donations coming in. Special thanks go to
those below that have raised money or made donations in recent months.
Donations
❚ Funeral donations in memory of Pip Finucane
❚ Funeral donations in memory of Irene May Benbow
❚ Triumph Motorcycles Ltd
❚ M E Hamblin
❚ Donations in celebration of the birthday of Isabel Hariades
❚ Tonally Different
❚ St Peter Mancroft Church Bereavement Group, Norwich
❚ Anne Bourne in memory of her daughter Louise Nuttell
❚ REMA
❚ Rhyl Cycling Club in memory of four members killed in 2006
❚ Mr and Mrs Hone
❚ Ted Prangnell
❚ Mrs C Ward in memory of son, Ian Nigel Ward
❚ Whirlow Wheelers Cycling Club
❚ Mrs Bourne in memory of daughter, Lisa
❚ Collection in honour of Kate Furneaux
❚ Jacobs Engineering UK Ltd
❚ Contributors to the collection box at the North London
Blood Transfusion Centre, placed by Godfrey Manning
❚ Mrs Belcher
❚ Mr and Mrs Saunders
❚ Mrs Maddams in memory of Simon Lawrence
❚ H March
❚ Donations in celebration of the birthday of Mrs Waite in
memory of husband
❚ L McNamara
❚ Mr and Mrs Dickson
❚ Roade School Fund, in memory of Rebecca Taylor
❚ Arun Bhat
❚ Mr and Mrs Sewell
❚ Mr and Mrs Cook collection box and donation
❚ Settle Parish Parochial Church Council
❚ Mr and Mrs Ashby
❚ Amisvelo Racing Team
❚ Mrs Fielding
❚ Mrs Shreeve in memory of her son
❚ King Charles I School in memory of ex-pupil, Ian Barnes
❚ JIB Pensions in memory of friend and colleague Hazel Griffin
❚ Funeral donations in memory of Carrie Maclaren
❚ Mr and Mrs Trout in memory of Chrystelle Brown
❚ Donations to mark the 70th birthday of Tom Morley
❚ Visitors of Sudbury Waitrose
❚ Christine and Martin Harrison in memory of their daughter
Sophie
❚ Mr Green in memory of Julie Anne Sheppard
❚ Mrs Kramer and Mrs Antell in memory of Beccy Antell
❚ Mrs Cranmer
❚ Mrs Miller to mark the 50th wedding anniversary of Mr and
Mrs Ted Prangnell
❚ Councillor Sara Michell
❚ Donors to John Doe’s collection box in Kraft Jewellers,
Chelmsford
Fundraising events
❚ Graham Davidson undertook a sponsored walk
❚ A Golf Competition was held in memory of Dave Stockwell
❚ An event was held at the Chequers Inn, Kent, in memory of
Hazel Griffin
❚ A lunch was held by the Catholic Women’s League Upminster
❚ Events were held for the Louise Sarah and Kathy Memorial
Fund
❚ Mrs Armitage held a raffle and collection in memory of her
son, Tom
❚ Charity nights held by Mrs Cantrill in memory of her brother,
Robert Ditchburn
❚ The Metropolitan Workshop Christmas gingerbread
competition, in memory of staff member Rebecca Goosen
❚ An event was held by the Technical Lodge of Freemasons
❚ Mark Hillman ran the Marlow 5 in memory of his mother,
Sue Hillman, and friend Dave Lee
❚ Richard Evans undertook a London to Edinburgh to London
cycle ride
❚ Sara Dowling ran the Run to the Beat 2009 Half Marathon
❚ Gavin Roberts undertook a 132 mile Alpine bike ride
❚ Marc Connor undertook a Manchester to Krakow bike ride
in memory of his sister
❚ Joanne Owens fundraised via JustGiving for Christmas 2009
in memory of Josh Callaghan
❚ Samantha Macfarlane took part in a sponsored walk in
memory of her brother, Marcus
❚ Nikhil-Raj McDuff took part in The Great Trent Jump skydive,
in memory of Carrie McLaren
❚ Chris Dodd ran the Bath Half Marathon, in memory of his
friend Mark
❚ Emma Slocombe will soon be running the Bristol 10km in
memory of her cousin Ben Baker
Are you a UK taxpayer? If so, have you signed a
declaration so that we can claim the tax back on your
donation? Gift Aid boosts the value of your donations
by 28p for every £1 you give at no extra cost to you. A
GiftAid declaration form can be downloaded from our
website or email natalie.bishop@roadpeace.org.
12 newsletter