Yorkshire to London cycle ride to raise awareness of the disgraceful condition of the National Police Memorial and lack of funding to repair and maintain it.

 

  

Michael Downes the Chairman of the West Yorkshire Police Federation was very proud during July of this year to have attended 10 Downing Street, during the national Police Bravery event in London, with both nominees and the relatives of fallen officers and moreover whilst there to have attended the National Police Memorial in the Mall, in the company of close relatives of fallen officers.

 

Sadly, he and others were to say the least disappointed, to see that the National Police Memorial had been maliciously damaged and was not functioning properly, the water pumps were broken and the water storage system beneath was leaking too. It transpired that our national memorial has been like this for a number of months, I am sure you will agree that this is unacceptable and indeed disrespectful.

 

The National Police Memorial charity run by Michael Winner, actually paid for the erection of the memorial and also secured a site for it on Crown property, in the Mall in 2004 and since then the Police Federation the staff association for police officers has paid for annual and ongoing maintenance; but sadly this has no permanence, nor does it have any provision for any repairs.

 

Michael Downes would like to raise funds, specifically for repairs but also for the ongoing maintenance and general upkeep of the national and local memorials, we feel very strongly that this should be supported by Police Forces and Police Authorities throughout England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, who should recognise and appreciate the ultimate sacrifice made by Police Officers, murdered or killed at work, whilst protecting the general public.

To that end Michael has written a personnel letter to all of the Police Authorities asking that they donate annually to the fund, 25p per officer, in their police area, this would be a splash in the ocean for police authorities but would mean a great deal to the colleagues, families and friends of fallen officers. Responses are still awaited from many and we would urge supporters of this cause, to enquire with their respective police authorities, how they have responded to this request and if they support the campaign.

 

Despite having not been on a bicycle since he was 15 years of age (now 45yrs) and as he remembers it, the cycle had a very large wheel at the front and a very small one to the rear, Michael has purchased a bicycle and he intends to cycle from West Yorkshire, to the National Police Memorial, in London, to raise awareness of this unacceptable and disrespectful situation.

 

Michael will leave Yorkshire on Saturday 31 October 2009 and he will be accompanied by 5 colleagues, representing all police ranks of the police service, the team of 6 will cycle from the memorial for Sharon Beshenivsky in Bradford, to the memorial for Ian Broadhurst in Leeds and finally they will lay a wreath at the memorial for John Speed, in Leeds City Centre, John was murdered 25 years to the day, so this event is very timely.

 

The wreath laying ceremony will occur outside Leeds Parish Church, Kirkgate, Leeds, at 11am on Saturday 31 October and it will be accompanied by a minutes silence.

 

Thereafter the 6 cyclists, namely Sergeant Michael Downes, Constable Ned Liddemore, Inspector Andrew Tempest Mitchell, Chief Inspector Rod Wark, Superintendent David Oldroyd and Assistant Chief Constable John Parkinson, will leave for London and plan to arrive in the Mall, central London on the morning of Tuesday 3 November.

 

A similar wreath laying ceremony will take place at the national police memorial in the Mall, as a mark of respect to over 4 thousand police officers, who have lost their lives at work, in a whole host of circumstances. Friends, Relatives and Colleagues are being encouraged to come together, either on cycles or on foot, to meet at a muster point a short distance from the memorial in Waterloo Place (off Pall Mall) London, at around 11 to 11.30amTuesday 3 November.

The group will then make there way on mass, to the national memorial in The Mall and it is hoped that this will generate significant public and media interest, to assist in promoting the campaign and ensuring our lost colleagues are not forgotten and that they are valued, appreciated and respected for years to come.

At 12pm the last post will be played, followed by a minutes silence and a wreath laying ceremony

 

The purpose of this activity is twofold, firstly to raise awareness of a need to have in place adequate funding, for the provision of ongoing maintenance and repairs, so that our memorials remain pristine long beyond any of our lifetimes, and secondly to raise sponsorship by way of either one off donations, but ideally by way of an annual commitment to the ongoing running and maintenance costs of the National Police Memorial.

 

A charity (Charity reference 1131267) has been set up specifically for this cause; it will be managed in trust, by the West Yorkshire Police Federation Chairman and also by the Secretary, so as to keep the funds within the Police family.

 

The fund will also be used to repair and maintain personal police memorials, erected locally, where officers have fallen and died. Sadly these are defaced from time to time and require remedial works to be undertaken.

 

Should any one person or any organisation wish to donate to this very worth cause please forward a cheque, made payable to “Police Memorial Repair and Maintenance Fund” for the attention of

Mr B Thorn (Treasurer) West Yorkshire Police Federation, 5b College grove Road, Wakefield,

WF1 3RL

 

or alternatively please credit monies direct to the charities bank account

 

Yorkshire Bank, Leeds.

 

Account number is 11455510

 

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WYPF pro-actively support an efficient and effective work force in a safe environment by:

• Protecting rights and entitlements,
• Representing views and concerns,
• Providing, where appropriate, legal representation.

 

 

last updated : 141009