In November 2019, the bullet was bitten and all the months of planning time had seemingly vanished in an instant. It was Day 1 of Midlands Road Safety and I wasn't sure how things were going to start. There'd been no expensive marketing drive and no fanfare to announce the arrival of a small, new, idealistic Road Safety focused consultancy in to the marketplace. Midlands Road Safety was set up as an opportunity to focus on the work that I have a real passion for and to create the opportunity to offer a wider approach. The goal was always to work alongside some fantastic professionals from a number of former 'lives' within the industry and to help to promote the integration of Road Safety within engineering design. Despite my early trepidation, what became apparent in those first few weeks is that whilst this field is undoubtedly a competitive one, it's also a family. There's been a huge amount of support from colleagues past and present, clients new and old and even some would be competitors that has enabled the first six months of Midlands Road Safety to be successful. Perhaps some of the biggest and most welcome positives in these first six months have arisen from some of the most challenging and testing times since the 2008 financial crisis. The COVID-19 pandemic has shaken the industry and the world to it's core, and is an ongoing tragedy that will undoubtedly take some while to recover from. In these testing times the engineering world has come together and, as it always does, it has 'found a way'. We've found new ways to work, to communicate be that client, supplier, highway authorities, planners, governing bodies you name it, and we have refused to let the current catastrophe grind everything to a halt. Social distancing has been woven in to every day life from how we attend site and work together to using new IT packages to share information and to stay in touch. But better than just finding a way, there's a great amount of sharing experiences, best practice, and an even stronger willingness to deliver solutions to previously unthinkable barriers that is pushing the industry from not just survival mode but progressing forwards. Problem solving is what got me in to Road Safety in the first place. It has inspired, tested, guided, ultimately led to the establishment of Midlands Road Safety Ltd six months ago. It's a skill that's been at the forefront these last few months and it is what will drive the company forward for, hopefully, many more months to come. Before signing off on this first post, I'd like to say a huge thank you. Thank you to those clients and colleagues who have taken a chance and supported Midlands Road Safety in these first, fledgling months. Without you, especially in these last two months, the company simply wouldn't exist.