Day: March 8, 2026

COVID-19 Day of Reflection to bring the nation together to remember the loss and sacrifices of pandemic

Six years on, communities across the country will come together to reflect on sacrifice and loss during the pandemic

  • Events, activities, and services are being held across the UK to commemorate the COVID-19 Day of Reflection
  • Ceremonies, concerts and walks are amongst events organised by communities across the UK to mark the sixth annual COVID-19 Day of Reflection. 

On Sunday 8 March, the nation will reflect and come together to remember those that lost their lives and to honour the tireless work and acts of kindness shown by many during the pandemic.

The COVID-19 Day of Reflection offers a chance to pay tribute to the work of health and social care staff, frontline workers, researchers and all those who volunteered a helping hand during the pandemic. The events also recognise that many are still feeling the impacts of the pandemic, for instance those with Long Covid or those who are immunocompromised.

Events, gatherings and commemorations are taking place across the country, including:

  • A day of quiet reflection at the National Covid Memorial Wall in London. The Friends of the Wall are hosting a short ceremony, which will include the placing of a wreath and the observation of minute’s silence at midday.
  • Royal Voluntary Service is arranging Time to Reflect tables within its services, where anyone is welcome to drop by for shared moments of reflection and to write personal messages or thanks to volunteers.
  • Caerphilly County Borough Council will host a COVID‑19 Day of Reflection event at the Ynys Hywel Covid Memorial Woodland, with an informal guided walk, a minute’s silence, and tea and coffee afterwards at Ynys Hywel Farm.
  • Memory Stones of Love are hosting a remembrance event at Belfast City Hall. The event will feature live music, poetry, as well as reflective speeches.
  • The Care Workers’ Charity has created and maintained an online Thank You Wall, giving people the opportunity to write a tribute or thank you to anyone working across social care including those in frontline care roles, managerial roles, administrative roles, maintenance roles, and more.
  • The Covid 19 Families Scotland gathered at the Sails Sculpture in Glasgow Green at 11.30 for a minute’s silence at midday yesterday (Saturday 7 March).
  • The Caribbean & African Health Network (CAHN) is hosting a community-led event at the Manchester Monastery. It brings together Black community and faith leaders, healthcare professionals, Black-led organisations and local people through a memorial service, wellbeing and creative activities, storytelling, and reflection.

Culture Minister Baroness Twycross said: “Whenever I walk along the National Covid Memorial Wall, I’m struck by the 250,000 hand-painted hearts that stretch for half a kilometer. It is a powerful tribute to loved ones who will not be forgotten.

“The pandemic impacted everyone, up and down the country. It touched us all, and the impact of Covid remains. 

“We now have the opportunity to come together as a nation to remember the quarter of a million lives lost. We also pay tribute to those on the front line during the pandemic, who made enormous sacrifices, day in, day out, to keep the British public safe – whether in health and social care, education, policing, transport or other front-line services.

“I encourage everyone to mark this day in a way that feels right for them, whether attending a community event or taking a quiet moment of reflection at home.”

Chair of the UK Commission on Covid Commemoration, Baroness Morgan said: For so many across the country, the COVID-19 pandemic left a legacy of grief and loss that is still carried today. Everyone lost something. 

“This year’s COVID-19 Day of Reflection is an opportunity for us all to pause and remember the lives lost because of the pandemic, recognising the efforts and sacrifices of frontline workers, as well as the volunteering and community spirit we saw and the contribution of the scientific community.”

This follows the Government affirming its commitment to the COVID-19 Day of Reflection as part of a broader commemorative programme that was announced last year. 

The programme also included commitments to preserve the National Covid Memorial Wall, create new commemorative green spaces for reflection with NHS Charities Together and Forestry England, and launch a new fellowship programme focusing on natural hazards and resilience as part of the UK Research and Innovation Policy Fellowship programme.

As part of this programme, Covid Commemoration webpages have also been established, which include a series of oral histories, education materials and details on memorials across the UK. 

Poppy Factory celebrates centenary on International Women’s Day

Lady Haig’s Poppy Factory today marks its 100th anniversary, celebrating a century of life-changing support for Scotland’s veterans. 

Founded in the aftermath of the First World War, when Scotland faced the return of more than 100,000 wounded military personnel, Lady Dorothy Haig established the factory to provide meaningful and dignified work for men disabled as a result of their service.

Many of these veterans had skills and experience, but their injuries meant they faced significant barriers to re-entering the workforce. The factory offered paid work in a structured, supportive environment, combining income with routine, purpose and community.

Comissioned Image take by Eamonn McGoldrick Tel: 07810 482491

Its opening on 8 March 1926 — International Women’s Day — which was not yet widely marked in Britain, has now become even more relevant given that the trailblazing Lady Haig was leading a national initiative at a time when few women held prominent public roles in civic life.

From its beginnings at Whitefoord House in Edinburgh with “three workers, a pair of scissors and a piece of paper”, the factory expanded quickly, producing the distinctive four-leafed Scottish poppy assembled by hand, as well as a range of toys and crafted household items. By the 1930s, the factory was a recognised part of Scotland’s civic landscape, becoming both a workplace and a symbol of national remembrance.

Today, a team of more than 30 veterans, all with supported needs, continue to manufacture thousands of handmade wreaths and other remembrance symbols from purpose-built premises on the capital’s Warriston Road. The factory also produces over 2.1 million poppies for the Scottish Poppy Appeal, organised annually by Poppyscotland in October and November.

Funds raised from the Scottish Poppy Appeal support Poppyscotland’s vital work, providing advice and assistance for veterans, those still serving, and their families. 

Over the years, the factory has been visited by thousands, from school groups, individuals and organisations to learn about its history and heritage, the development of the Scottish poppy, and the continuing importance of remembrance. It has also welcomed royal patrons, including HRH The Princess Royal, who officially re-opened the factory following a refurbishment in January 2023.

Helen Owen, Chair of Poppyscotland, said: “Lady Haig was practical and compassionate and realised the difficulty many veterans faced in gaining employment because of disability after war.

“A dynamo of a woman, she recognised the need not only to create Scottish poppies for Armistice Day, but to provide meaningful work all year round. The factory turned out goods of exceptional quality, and she and her band of ‘lady collectors’ sold the poppies and goods across the length and breadth of Scotland.

“Today, the work of this remarkable woman lives on, and the Factory proudly continues to play its role in supporting the Armed Forces community in Scotland.”

To learn more about the factory’s history, or to book a tour of Lady Haig’s Poppy Factory, please visit www.poppyscotland.org.uk

Lady Haig’s Poppy Factory – NICOLA PETRIE case study

Having come from an Armed Forces family, it felt natural for Nicola Petrie to move into military life, joining the Royal Navy in 1986 at the age of 20.

Nicola, who suffers from MS and now works as a wreath maker at Lady Haig’s Poppy Factory in Edinburgh, began her service as an onshore radio operator at Faslane, tasked with delivering the communication between ships and the naval base, as well as making sure the submariners received their weekly ‘family-grams’.

It was an important role and one Nicola enjoyed for seven years, feeling an overwhelming sense of pride whenever she pulled on her Navy uniform. However, she left her post in 1992 to start a family with her husband John, who she met while serving.

Nicola explained: “I loved my time in the Royal Navy and always looked forward to going to work. The other girls in the department were great and I loved hearing their stories – we had a real bond so I was sad when, after seven years, it was time for me to leave.

“But John and I had made the choice to start a family and that he would remain in the Navy. Back then, if a woman was pregnant she had to leave post. It was disappointing having to give up the job I loved as I really could have made a proper career of it, but it was exciting too knowing that we were going to have children.”

After Nicola left the Royal Navy, she and John went on to have three children – two boys and a girl – and with John away on an eight-month deployment, Nicola juggled home life, looking after their young children and working in a local home improvement firm, later setting up her own company.

Nicola said: “John was in the Navy for 24 years in total but when he left he became a stay-at-home dad and let me put my heart and soul into the business to build a career for myself.

“When I retired from that we both felt that strong pull back to some sort of military life and that’s where Poppyscotland came in. The factory only employs veterans with supported needs, meaning the role was ideally suited to me as a person living with MS. I joined in April of 2025, a year after John, and we absolutely love it.

“We work with like-minded people who have come from all sorts of Armed Forces backgrounds, and everyone has a story or two to tell. It really connects you back to military life, which is all we’ve ever really known.”

When she’s not helping to make the thousands of poppy wreaths produced at the factory every year, Nicola, who lives in Falkirk, enjoys spending time with her two young grandchildren and beloved dog Molly.

Nicola added: “Lady Haig’s Poppy Factory really means something to me. The memorabilia, the tales, the people and visitors who pass by during tours – it’s just a special place and I’m very grateful to be here and be a part of the 100-year anniversary.”