A TEEN rock band has written a tribute song for Witney schoolgirl Liberty Baker who died last year.

Liberty, 14, was killed on June 30 last year when she was hit by a car driven by Robert Blackwell as she walked to Henry Box School.

Twisted State of Mind, who have a record contract with US label Toil Records, penned the song Forever in memory of the 14-year-old, who used to watch them play.

Luke Ashby, Ben Comley and Damon Marshall, all 15, will perform their tribute song at a festival to remember Liberty.

Lib Fest is due to take place on June 27 and will include a gig at Fat Lil’s club in Corn Street.

Band manager Eric Marshall said he hoped members of Liberty’s family would be on backing vocals when the song is recorded at the weekend.

Ben Comley, who went to school with Liberty, said: “The song shows that there’s no going back, there’s nothing we can do about what happened.

“It’s about how people were shocked but there’s still hope and we should remember the good things about her.

“She will always be here with us.”

The 15-year-old bass guitarist said the song was unlike anything the band had ever written before and came with its own challenges.

He said: “Obviously it had to mean something and we really put a lot of effort into it.

“I did find it hard – at times it was quite emotional.”

He added: “We are looking forward to playing Lib Fest I hope the day is not about grieving for Liberty but it’s about remembering her.”

The band, who have been playing gigs since they were 11 and toured America twice, decided to write the song when they were asked to play the festival.

Lead guitarist Luke Ashby said: “When we were asked to play Lib Fest we wanted to do something to help the family.

“We thought it would be a great idea to release a song for her and raise some money for them.”

Mr Marshall said: “She used to come and watch their gigs. It’s quite a shock when one of the people you know dies at the age of 14.”

“They really wanted to do something to commemorate her life and her love of music and they thought the best way to do that was to write a song.”

Liberty’s dad Paul said: “Liberty went to school with one of the band and she had supported them at some of their concerts. We made a small donation out of the Liberty Baker Memorial Fund to the band towards their tour of America.”

Festival organiser Mike Dove said more than 100 bands applied to play on the main stage.

He said several bands made up of Liberty’s friends had agreed to combine as one to play their own tribute song.

Mr Dove said: “It’s a phenomenal gesture from the Twisted State of Mind boys and we have a supergroup of other bands made up of her peers who will also be singing a tribute.”

The festival will include a 5km fun run through the closed streets of Witney, followed by a family fun day on The Leys with music, stalls from local traders and a silent disco.”

Blackwell, 19, was jailed for four years at Oxford Crown Court in April, after pleading guilty to causing Liberty’s death.