Effigy to be placed in Kensington Palace gardens, to mark 20th anniversary of her death in a Paris car accident

Diana, Princess of Wales is to be commemorated with a statue commissioned by her sons to mark the 20th anniversary of her death this year.

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The Duke of Cambridge and Prince Harry said it was now appropriate to “recognise her positive impact” at home and abroad with the monument. It will be in a place she knew well, the public gardens of her former home, Kensington Palace.

The royal brothers said: “It has been 20 years since our mother’s death and the time is right to recognise her positive impact in the UK and around the world with a permanent statue. Our mother touched so many lives. We hope the statue will help all those who visit Kensington Palace to reflect on her life and her legacy.”

William was 15 years old and Harry 12 when Diana was killed in a car crash in Paris on 31 August 1997.

Prince Harry made a rare public admission earlier this month about his feelings following the accident, saying during a visit to a London bereavement centre that he felt “very angry” when his mother died. Harry revealed last summer during an interview that he had not talked about his mother’s death “for the first 28 years of my life”.

The 10th anniversary of Diana’s death was marked by a concert at Wembley stadium, on what would have been her 46th birthday, and a service at the Guards’ Chapel near Buckingham Palace.

Diana’s sister, Lady Sarah McCorquodale, will be a member of the six-strong committee tasked with commissioning and privately raising funds for the creation of the statue, alongside Julia Samuel, who is a godparent of Prince George and was a close friend to the princess.

It will be chaired by Jamie Lowther-Pinkerton, the royal brothers’ former principal private secretary. Its members will advise on the choice of sculptor and will work with Historic Royal Palaces on the installation.

A spokesperson for Kensington Palace said work would begin soon but it was not possible to say when the statue would be unveiled, although it is hoped the ceremony would take place this year.

The Diana Award – a charity established to promote the princess’s belief in the positive power of young people – will commemorate her life throughout 2017 with a range of events, from the launch of an international award to the founding of a national “kindness day”.