Make Covid memorial wall permanent, volunteers urge ministers

Volunteers at the Covid memorial wall in London urged ministers to make the monument permanent as Britain marked its first national day of reflection after the pandemic.

- Hayden Vernon

The wall runs between Westminster Bridge and Lambeth Bridge on the capital's South Bank and is looked after by volunteers, who rely on public donations to maintain it.

For yesterday's day of reflection, the volunteers strung heart-shaped lights along the 500-metre stretch of the wall, on which hand-painted hearts feature, and placed a bouquet of flowers at each of its 25 panels.

Those lost to Covid-19 were commemorated by a minute's silence.

But volunteers have raised concerns that without government recognition the wall may not become an enduring memorial to the pandemic.

Lynn Jones, 71, from Stoke-onTrent, is a volunteer who lost her husband to Covid and now travels 150 miles every Friday to help maintain the wall.