The mother of a man who was killed by a hit-and-run driver is to do a skydive in his memory.

Ryan Saltern, 31, a husband and father to Cath and Harry, died when he was hit by a car while walking back from St Teath Carnival. He was left for dead on the B3267 in July 2019.

The driver neither stopped, nor reported the accident.

The following year, Wayne Shilling pleaded guilty to failing to stop and failing to report an accident but only received a four-month jail sentence, which was suspended for a year, and a driving ban for 12 months.

Since then, the family have been campaigning for Ryan’s Law, which would widen the definition of death by dangerous driving to include drivers who fail to stop, ring 999 or render aid until help arrives. That would allow a minimum 10-year sentence. Their petition for a law change attracted 167,461 signatures.

Ryan’s mother Helen is now planning to take to the sky on her 60th birthday.

“To mark my 60th birthday I decided to do a tandem skydive in memory of my son Ryan,” she said.  My Skydive is on April 30, 2023, close to Ryan’s 35th heavenly birthday.

“Ryan was killed on July 28, 2019 by a hit-and-run driver.  We have been petitioning ever since to change the law for this crime ‘Ryans Law’. 

“My son is loved and missed by so many, our family has been left devastated.

“Ryan has always raised money for charities and did a skydive himself, so I thought I would follow his example. 

“I chose Children’s Hospice South West as I know the pain and sadness a parent/s feel when you lose a child whatever their age.  

“If I can help in a small way to raise funds for this charity and enable them to continue in the amazing support they offer families, then I have managed to turn a positive from a negative in memory of Ryan.”

Helen has already raised around £1,000 and she hopes to increase that before her jump. She has set up a JustGiving page where people can sponsor her.