Created by bereaved families in 2021, the National Covid Memorial Wall is a visual representation of the UK's catastrophic loss to Covid-19. The Wall stretches for 500 metres alongside the River Thames, directly opposite the Houses of Parliament.  There are more than 200,000 individually hand-painted red hearts, each representing a person who died with Covid-19 as a direct cause of death.

Many of the hearts on the Wall have been personalised with individual messages written either by the bereaved or by the volunteers who are there every week, maintaining this unique memorial.  The original hearts were drawn with art pens, which have faded with the London weather, so each heart on the entire Wall has had to be repainted with long-lasting masonry paint.

The Friends of the Wall are in ongoing discussions with relevant authorities, as they work towards the Wall being made a permanent memorial.  Funds raised will be used for materials to maintain and preserve the Wall, and for all the necessary legal costs and planning permission required to ensure that the National Covid Memorial Wall is there for future generations.

Looking into the future, we also hope to be able to create a portable representation of the National Covid Memorial Wall that we can exhibit around the United Kingdom, enabling people who would be unable to visit London to see and engage with it. 

As the Wall is a UK memorial, although located in London, the Friends of the Wall also try to make it as accessible as possible through public events, such as lighting 2000 LED candles for Christmas, anniversary ceremonies and other activities to promote the National Covid Memorial Wall highlighting the ongoing loss of life.