Portsmouth memorial planned to remember Covid-19 victims

Plans to create a memorial to remember people who died from coronavirus in Portsmouth are under way.

The design and location will be decided following a public consultation to see what type of memorial residents would like.

The memorial is expected to also honour key workers and NHS workers.

A new charity, the Portsmouth Coronavirus Memorial Trust, has been set up by the city's council to support the project to mark the pandemic.

James Daly, cultural development and projects officer at the council, said: "We will ask the public what they would like to see - there are no ideas at this stage about what we would have as the crisis is ongoing.

"We know that memorials are important as remembrance but also as part of the healing process so it's important people in the city feel ownership of it."

Relatives of those who have died in the city have welcomed the move the Local Democracy Reporting Service reported.

To date 229 people have died at Queen Alexandra Hospital from Covid-19.