Double delight for Trust as funded projects are recognised at prestigious awards ceremony
Two of the projects funded by The Road Safety Trust have been recognised in the prestigious Prince Michael International Road Safety Awards.
Founded and presented by HRH Prince Michael of Kent, the awards program has been honouring outstanding achievement and innovation in road safety since 1987, and projects supporting the UN Decade of Action for Road Safety which aims to halve global road deaths and injuries by 2030.
This year, 17 winners and three highly commended entries were recognised for their outstanding contribution to road trauma reduction in the categories of road safety management, safe road use, safe infrastructure, safe vehicles, speed management, technology and post-crash response.
And we’re proud to say that two of the winners have been funded by The Road Safety Trust – IMPACT: The Centre for Post-Collision Research, Innovation and Translation, and HIPER: Helmet Impact Performance Effectiveness Rating.
IMPACT is the world’s first centre focused on improving outcomes from road injury through post-collision research, innovation, and translation. Built on the award-winning EXIT project, it has created practical tools which are helping to transform emergency response and post-crash care, driving real-world change across systems, through engagement with U.S. Department of Transport, the Faculty of Prehospital Care, The African Federation for Emergency Medicine and the World Rescue Organisation.
HIPER is a bicycle helmet rating system built on state-of-the-art research in brain injury biomechanics. It assesses helmets under real-world impact conditions and provides consumers with objective safety data. The HIPER has been viewed over 100k times and featured in several media outlets with global reach, which has prompted retailers to lower the prices of their better-performing helmets, while manufacturers have sought to innovate their designs for improved safety performance. In the long term, it’s hoped that this will reduce head injuries in cycling incidents.
All winners were recognised at a glittering ceremony in London last night (Tuesday 25 November). The Premier Award, presented the organisation the Prince considers has had the most impact on road safety, was given to Swedish company Autoliv, whose technologies have been driving global automotive safety for over 70 years.
Ruth Purdie OBE, Chief Executive of the Road Safety Trust, said: “The Prince Michael International Road Safety Awards recognise initiatives that make a meaningful contribution to reducing deaths and serious injuries. IMPACT’s recognition reflects the value of strengthening post-collision care and the difference this research is making in the real world.
“This work is an important contribution to improving outcomes after road collisions, both here in the UK and internationally. Professor Nutbeam’s leadership has been absolutely central to the programme’s reach and success. We are extremely pleased to have played a part in supporting this achievement.
“I’d also like to congratulate the team at Imperial College London for the recognised success of the Hiper website. I’m delighted to see that the cycle helmet rating system is having such a widespread – and potentially lifesaving – impact.
The 2025 Prince Michael International Road Safety Awards Programme involved the review of nearly 80 international nominations from 27 countries, across seven categories, by 30 expert judges representing all areas of road safety.
Congratulating all the winners, HRH Prince Michael said: “I am delighted that winners come from so many countries across the world and show how much can be achieved to reduce casualties through innovative programmes at local, national and international levels. I am also especially pleased to be able to recognise successes of both small NGOs and the private sector, as well as governments.”
26 November 2025