A church in Edinburgh has unveiled plans to build a memorial to commemorate lives lost during the Covid pandemic.

An oval granite memorial will be placed at Liberton Kirk, Kirkgate, beside the main path through the Kirkyard to Liberton Cemetery and Liberton Brae.

John Young, the minister at Liberton Kirk, said: “The pandemic impacted many different people in different ways, and we want to provide a quiet place of remembrance, especially for those who are still processing the loss of loved ones – both near and far. The oval granite memorial will remember all those who suffered during the pandemic, as well as those who died.”

While the memorial itself won't bear names, families can choose to honour their loved ones by having their names engraved on brass plaques adorning nearby benches.

To fund the memorial, the church has set up a Just Giving page to raise £ 8,000. Any surplus funds will be directed towards supporting the CrossReach care homes under the administration of the Church of Scotland.

The church is hoping to unveil the memorial in May 2024, close to the first anniversary of the World Health Organization (WHO) declaring Covid-19 was no longer a global pandemic. They are hoping to hold a short service of remembrance every May for those who died.