THE DUKE OF CAMBRIDGE WILL VISIT THE WEST MIDLANDS
Birmingham and Stourbridge
Tuesday 18th September, 2018
The Duke of Cambridge will visit the West Midlands on Tuesday 18th September. His Royal Highness will start the day at the University of Birmingham, where he will attend the first National SkillForce Prince William Award Graduation Ceremony. The ceremony will mark the successful first year of the Prince William Award, which is a scheme that aims to help young people build their character, resilience and confidence. The Duke will make a speech congratulating the children’s achievement, present special awards and meet some of the scheme’s newest graduates.
His Royal Highness will then visit Acorns Children’s Hospice in Selly Oak, who provide specialist care for life limited and life threatened children and their families. In the past year, Acorns has provided care for more than 870 children and over 1,000 families. The Duke will meet some of the families who use the hospice’s specialist facilities, which include a multisensory room and hydrotherapy pool. His Royal Highness will then join their celebrations for the charity’s 30th anniversary, which was opened in 1988 by Diana, Princess of Wales.
Finally, His Royal Highness will travel to Mary Stevens Park in Stourbridge where he will unveil a new statue of Major Frank Foley CMG. An MI6 officer who served in both World Wars, Major Foley saved over 10,000 people from persecution in Germany during the 1920s and ’30s. Foley’s cover as a Passport Control Officer at the British Consulate in Berlin enabled him to provide visas to those who feared persecution under Nazi racial laws, and ultimately saved their lives. As a result of this act, Foley was recognised as one of the Righteous Among the Nations. Major Foley retired to Stourbridge where he lived quietly for almost a decade. The Duke will talk to members of Foley’s family and descendants of some of the people whom he saved to remember his life and achievement. His Royal Highness will also meet Ian Austin MP and representatives of the Holocaust Educational Trust who have worked together to spearhead this campaign to honour Major Foley.
