To respectfully return items to bereaved families who have lost a loved one on West Mercia’s roads, special dignity boxes have been funded by Police and Crime Commissioner John Campion.
Supplying policing teams across Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Shropshire, the boxes are a compassionate way of giving personal belongings back to a family following a fatal crash.
The initiative is being led by RoadPeace, a charity supported by the PCC, which supports victims of serious injury collisions, as well as for bereaved families and witnesses in West Mercia.
The boxes contain a leaflet to support bereaved families, as well as a guide to assist officers when returning items.
PCC John Campion said: “I know from listening to bereaved families who have sadly lost a loved one on our roads about the impact it has on their lives.
“That’s why it’s absolutely vital that anyone affected by loss is given the support and guidance they need in their darkest hour. I am proud to be able to play my part, with the box being a small but significant way of respecting the victim and their family.”
Lucy Harrison, RoadPeace’s Project and Outreach Coordinator said: “The death of a loved one in a road traffic collision is clearly highly traumatic – but people don’t often think about the procedures that follow. After my brother was killed, his possessions were handed back broken and bent in a bag, with no warning.
“At RoadPeace, we hear similar stories from so many members. This is why we are so grateful to bereaved family members Abbie Brooks, Stacey Roalfe and Sam Pointon; they worked with me to develop this project in the hope we could provide just a little comfort to families bereaved in the future.
“We’d also like to say a huge thank you to West Mercia Police and the PCC for their input to this project – we are all committed to sparing crash victims from even further heartbreak.”
Superintendent Stuart Bill from West Mercia Police said: “Supporting bereaved families is an important part of roads policing. While we wish nobody had to go through the pain of losing a loved one following a collision, it is a tragic reality that people continue to lose their lives or be seriously injured on our roads. We are very proud to work with RoadPeace across Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Shropshire and hope that the dignity boxes further reinforce the compassion shown by our officers towards bereaved families at an incredibly difficult time.”
Photo shows from left to right:
RoadPeace’s Abbie Brookes, Resilience Building Programme Coordinator, PCC John Campion, RoadPeace group member Stacey Roalfe, RoadPeace’s Lucy Harrison West Mercia Project and Outreach Coordinator and Kate Gynn Victim Care Coordinator and, West Mercia Police’s Detective Inspector Stephanie Arrowsmith.
