February 2, 2018 9.59 am This story is over 72 months old

Princess Diana’s sister to open memorial to Lincolnshire’s road crash victims

The memorial will officially open later this year.

Princess Diana’s sister will open a memorial to remember those who have tragically lost their lives on Lincolnshire’s roads.

Lady Sarah McCorquodale, who lives in Stoke Rochford in Lincolnshire, will officially open the memorial in Boston’s Westgate Woods at a ceremony on Saturday, April 21.

The Princess of Wales of course was killed in a car crash in Paris in 1997.

A £45,000 fundraising campaign has provided a path through the woods to a memorial space open for everyone.

Wild flowers inside an avenue of lime trees will border the pathway, which will have a stone finish in keeping with the natural look of the woodland area.

It is believed the memorial will cost around £40,000

A wet oak shelter is to be constructed to one side of the path for quiet reflection and to remember all those who have died in tragic circumstances on the county’s roads.

The green slate memorial, suitably engraved with a dedication and symbolic footsteps, will be laid into the path.

Boston Woods Trust, which owns and manages the woodland on the outskirts of Boston, made the area available, alongside one of the avenues which all point towards Boston Stump in the distance.

The trust successfully bid for a £10,000 Heritage Lottery Grant to help pay towards the cost of the path, with the memorial committee adding its contribution.

There have been many generous private donations and fundraising events organised by the committee, and the memorial has been supported by Lincolnshire Road Safety Partnership and Churches Together In All Lincolnshire.

Campaign organiser Anne Bourne, of Boston, lost her daughter in a crash where four people were killed.

Her other daughter was seriously injured.

She said: “It has been a long, hard slog and I couldn’t have done it without all the support I have had from group members.

“We have been bowled over by the generosity we have received from those who have made donations and supported the fundraising events.

“We are all very grateful.”