Police Memorial Trust

The Police Memorial Trust is a charitable organisation based in London, England. The trust's objective is to erect memorials to British police officers killed in the line of duty, on the spot where they met their death, thereby acting as a permanent reminder to the public of the sacrifice they made.

Inspiration

The Police Memorial Trust was the brainchild of film producer Michael Winner. Inspired by the fatal shooting on April 17, 1984 of WPC Yvonne Fletcher outside the Libyan People's Bureau in London, Winner wrote a letter to the editor of "The Times" newspaper, suggesting a memorial be erected in WPC Fletcher's honour. After receiving donations from members of the public, Winner established the trust on May 3, 1984.

Memorials

The first Police Memorial Trust memorial was that for WPC Fletcher and was unveiled at St. James's Square in London, the site of Fletcher's shooting, by the then prime minister Margaret Thatcher on February 1, 1985.

The trust's third memorial, and the first to be erected outside London, was sited at the seafront at Frinton-on-Sea in Essex where PC Brian Bishop was fatally shot by an armed robber on August 22, 1984. Bishop's memorial was unveiled by the then home secretary, Douglas Hurd, on February 19, 1986.

The latest memorial was unveiled by Prime Minister Gordon Brown in Luton town centre on 3rd October 2008 to mark the site of the fatal stabbing of PC Jon Henry.

National Police Memorial

A total of 36 memorials in honour of police officers killed on duty have been placed throughout the United Kingdom. The National Police Memorial, sited in St. James's Park at the junction of Horse Guards Road and The Mall, was unveiled on April 26, 2005 by Queen Elizabeth II on behalf of the Police Memorial Trust.

External links

* [http://www.policememorial.org.uk/Police_Memorial_Trust/Police_Memorial_Trust.htm Police Memorial Trust]
* [http://www.essex.police.uk/memorial/roll_bis.htm Essex Police Memorial Trust: Brian 'Bill' Bishop]