Oldham man becomes face of campaign after losing partner Frankie Hough

Calvin Buckley lost his partner Frankie Hough in May last year when Adil Iqbal, 23, crashed into the back of her car in the M66 in Bury after she had pulled to the side of the motorway after sustaining a flat tyre.

Iqbal, of Hope Street, Accrington, had been filming himself driving at more than 100mph, when he lost control and crashed, killing Frankie, who was pregnant at the time with her and Calvin's daughter, Neeve, and injuring one of Frankie's sons and her nephew.

Calvin and Frankie had been together for nearly three years (Image: TfGM)

Now, nearly a year after her death, Calvin, 41, has spoken publicly as part of a campaign warning drivers not to use their phones when behind the wheel.

Calvin said: "For me, personally, the devastation and loss that I’ve experienced completely changed my life. 

"I’d go as far to say it's destroyed my life, so the only thing I could do to try and make that tragedy a little bit better is to get involved in road safety work.

"This campaign is obviously something that’s quite close to me.

"I see it every day where people are using their phones, whether it's reading a message, changing music, I think it’s an issue that is growing and the impact is massive that it can cause to people."

Calvin admitted the last year has been very challenging for him, but he is determined to help make roads safer (Image: Newsquest)

Calvin has chosen to share his story publicly as part of the "Touch. Screen" campaign in an effort to raise awareness of how important it is for drivers to not get distracted by their phones.

The Oldhamer, who had been with Frankie, 38, for nearly three years before her death, has become an advocate for driver safety in the last few months and said he was "proud" of what he had managed to do to try and make roads safer.

Discussing the health of the boys, Calvin said: "All the boys are recovering well, they are going to be left with issues from the incident that may stay with them, lifelong, so it’s just about taking it day by day, but they are on the road to recovery."

Reflecting on the past year on a personal level, he said: "[It's been] quite a difficult year, obviously with what went on, but then there’s also a bit of hope and optimism that I do feel [like] I’m starting to make a difference and that people are starting to take note of road safety.

"It’s been the most challenging year of my life but one where I’ve grown a lot as a person."

Calvin and Inspector Jamie Buchanan were at the launch of the 'Touch. Screen' campaign (Image: TfGM)

Between 2014 and 2023, 138 people were killed or seriously injured following car crashes in Greater Manchester where driver distraction was a contributing factor.

Of those deaths, 23 people lost their lives in a crash where the driver was using a mobile phone.

Inspector Jamie Buchanan, from Greater Manchester Police, said: "Sadly, still too many people are getting killed and seriously injured on Greater Manchester roads.

Inspector Buchanan (Image: Newsquest)

"We are totally in gratitude to somebody like Mr Buckley [for] lending us his voice.

"It’s an important message straight off but to actually have somebody support our message with their own personal experiences it really helps to drive home that message."

Touch. Screen, a partnership between Safer Roads Greater Manchester and Transport for Greater Manchester, looks to discourage drivers from checking their phones or being distracted by their phones when driving, as the consequences can be extremely serious, even fatal.

The campaign urges drivers to put their phone where it won't distract them and pull over in a safe place to make a call or text if needed.