Service of Remembrance and Hope
Honouring Road Traffic Victims – World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims 2025
Sunday 16 November 2025
4.00pm
All Saints Church, Huntingdon

All are welcome to join us in reflection and remembrance.

As we approach the end of the year, I wanted to focus this month’s CEO blog on something that sits quietly behind the scenes of our service — but ultimately determines whether we are able to be there for those who need us most: funding.

At the Road Victims Trust, our mission is clear. We provide free, specialist emotional and practical support to people affected by fatal and life-changing road collisions. That support continues long after police involvement ends, and for as long as an individual requires us. It is deeply personal work that cannot be rushed. It is also a service that families should never have to worry about affording.

And yet, there is currently no central government funding for post-collision support.

Our continued delivery relies on a fragile ecosystem of contributions:

• Police and Crime Commissioners who fund and champion our work
• Charitable trusts and foundations that share our values
• Corporate supporters committed to social impact
• Fundraisers, donors and community groups who give in honour, in remembrance, or in hope

I am extremely grateful to each and every one of these supporters — without you, the work simply could not happen. Your belief in RVT ensures families facing the most traumatic moments of their lives receive compassionate and professional support.

Demand for our service remains stubbornly consistent. Even with the commitment and innovation of road safety professionals, charities, and other dedicated organisations and individuals across the UK, the number of people affected by devastating collisions continues at a steady and concerning level. The emotional toll remains enormous, and sadly, unchanged.

As a former senior police officer, I fully recognise that budgets and the cost of policing have long been crucial considerations. During periods of austerity introduced after 2010, resources were stretched and difficult decisions had to be made. Yet, the organisation always found a way to deliver — an officer, a staff member, someone would respond, even if not quite as quickly as we would have hoped. The job got done because it had to be done.

The Road Victims Trust is no different in that determination to deliver. We are driven by a shared purpose to ensure that support is available at the earliest possible opportunity. When a family needs us, it cannot wait for a more convenient financial moment.

However, there is one significant difference: our team is much smaller, and the cloth that requires cutting is far smaller. There is no statutory funding safety net. No automatic replacement when capacity runs thin. Every single counselling hour depends on contributions from those who believe in what we do.

Our responsibility — to ensure no one faces this alone — continues to grow, even when the resources do not grow alongside it.

There is promising work underway nationally. The Victims’ Commissioner is conducting important research to better understand the lived experience of those who have been affected by road trauma. We are hopeful that this will be both informative and powerful, helping to ensure that the needs of road victims and their families are recognised — not as an afterthought, but as a central component of victim care in the UK.

In the meantime, I continue to do everything I can personally to raise both awareness and funds for the Trust. Together with my wife, Erika, I will be taking part in the London Landmarks Half Marathon on 12th April 2026, running in support of the Road Victims Trust and all those whose lives have been affected by road trauma.
If you would like to support our efforts, you can visit my JustGiving page here:
👉 Paul & Erika’s London Landmarks Half Marathon — JustGiving

So this month, my ask is simple:

*If you are a funder — please consider supporting our work.
*If you are a partner — help us raise the profile of RVT within your networks.
*If you are someone who believes in what we do — share our voice.

➡️ To donate to help us continue this vital work, please visit:
https://rvtrust.org.uk/support-us/donate/#caf

Every referral represents a life and, in many cases, lives changed forever.
Every new family needs a trusted hand to guide them through the pain.
Every pound donated helps ensure we can be there when it matters the most.

Thank you for supporting our work and helping us bring hope to those who need it most.

Together, we can help rebuild lives.

— Paul