Victims affected by road crashes benefit from Brake support

THOSE affected by road traffic collisions in Cheshire are to benefit from support given by a specialist charity.

The support is offered thanks to funding from the county’s police and crime commissioner (PCC).

PCC David Keane has awarded a £2,000 grant to Brake, the road safety charity, to allow them to support victims and their families across Cheshire.

Last year, the charity supported 11 Cheshire residents whose loved ones had either been killed or seriously injured in road traffic collisions, and this funding will allow more local people to be given vital support.

The funding will allow Brake to provide one-toone support for families who have lost a loved one through specialist bereavement packs which take them through the criminal justice or coroner’s process.

They will also use the grant to train police officers and local volunteers around how to appropriately support those affected by road traffic collisions.

The funding has come from the commissioner’s Safer Communities Fund which uses the Proceeds of Crime Act (PoCA 2002) to take money from criminals and reinvest it back into the community.

PCC David Keane said: “Road traffic collisions are the biggest killer in Cheshire with 36 people losing their lives on roads and motorways in 2019.

“This funding will allow Brake to provide much-needed support to the 36 families who had their whole worlds completely shattered and the many more... previously affected personally by road incidents.

“Furthermore, making our roads safer will continue to be one of my key priorities and throughout 2021, I’ll be working with the chief constable to develop a new roads policing strategy for Cheshire which will bring in new initiatives to improve road safety and protect Cheshire residents.”