A CHARITY founder was killed when the car she was being driven in crashed in Africa.

Lucy Dickenson, 32, of Hannah Street, Barry died on a trip to Zambia to educate women about their rights.

An inquest heard she was thrown from a Toyota car when its tyres suddenly burst during a journey to Lake Karimba, the world's largest man-made lake and reservoir.

She suffered multiple injuries and later died at the Mtendere Mission Hospital in the city of Chirundu.

The charity worker had been in south-central Africa for two months to work with Monze District Land Alliance.

She previously set up charitable projects in Cambodia, Uganda, Sierra Leone, Ghana, India, and Nepal, as well as back home in the UK.

Miss Dickenson and her twin sister Hannah Fitt set up the SAFE Foundation in 2006 to fight poverty in developing countries, and raised money for projects across the world.

The organisation also sent volunteers from the UK to lead educational workshops in Africa and Asia.

Miss Dickenson died on August 20, 2012, but the conclusion to her inquest was adjourned until this week while the Foreign Office struggled to gain more information from Zambian authorities.

The car's driver was initially arrested on suspicion of causing Miss Dickenson's death, but an investigation into him was halted by her family's own request.

Her body was repatriated to Wales after her death, and a post mortem said she died from multiple injuries.

Coroner Philip Spinney apologised to her family for the delay in concluding the inquest, saying: "To lose a family member like this must be difficult. To wait so long must be very difficult."

He recorded a conclusion of death from multiple injuries.

Speaking after the inquest Miss Dickenson’s father Mark Dickenson said: “We've just had the coroner’s verdict on Lucy's death, accidental.

"We didn't expect anything else, but having to go through all the reports and details of her accident five years ago, almost to the day, was traumatic and upsetting.

"It takes a long time to learn to live with what must be every parent’s worst nightmare, but with the continued support of both the extended 'Dicko' family and the SAFE family we're getting there.

"Thank you to all of you who've been there for us over the years."

Speaking at the time of her death, tributes were paid to Miss Dickenson by people across the UK.

Professor Stephen Tomlinson, chairman of Vale for Africa and the Wales for Africa health Links Networks, said: "Lucy and the Safe Foundation worked together with Vale for Africa as partners.

"She was a joy; she brightened up any room she entered.

"She was truly inspirational and cared deeply for the poor, the sick and the disadvantaged, especially children in Africa and Asia."

Vale AM Jane Hutt said: "Lucy was an extraordinary person, of vision, of commitment and of courage.

"She was a true leader of young people and helped changed the lives of young people from Wales as well as across the world.

"In her short life she achieved so much more than we see in policies and programmes, which have good intention but can take decades to deliver.

"It was an honour and privilege to know Lucy Dickenson."