Statement from Kensington Palace
17th January 2024
The Princess of Wales Recovering Following Abdominal Surgery
The Prince of Wales will Visit Rob Burrow and Kevin Sinfield
THE PRINCE OF WALES WILL VISIT ROB BURROW AND KEVIN SINFIELD AT HEADINGLEY STADIUM
Thursday 11th January 2024
The Prince of Wales will travel to Headingley Stadium in Leeds on Thursday 11th January to meet with Rob Burrow and Kevin Sinfield and congratulate them on their outstanding efforts to raise awareness of, and funds to fight, Motor Neurone Disease.
Rob Burrow was diagnosed with Motor Neurone Disease (MND) in December 2019, just two years after retiring from his position as scrum half at Leeds Rhinos, for whom he played throughout his entire professional career. Since his diagnosis Rob has inspired nearly £15 million of fundraising activity, including over £8.5 million raised by his friend and former teammate, Kevin Sinfield.
In 2020, Kevin embarked on his first fundraising challenge, the ‘7 in 7’, which saw him run seven marathons in seven days and raise over £2 million. Every year since then, Kevin has undertaken endurance challenges, including the inaugural Rob Burrow Leeds Marathon in May 2023 and the ‘7 in 7 in 7’ challenge, running seven ultra marathons across seven cities in seven days later the same year.
Upon arrival at the stadium, the Prince will speak with Rob and Kevin about their playing days at Leeds Rhinos. Playing alongside each other from 2001-2015, the pair won seven Grand Finals, two Challenge Cup Finals at Wembley, and three World Club titles together.
His Royal Highness will then join a conversation with both men and their families to hear more about their efforts over the past four years to champion and support those impacted by MND across the UK and Ireland.
In addition to supporting a number of charities, including Motor Neurone Disease Association, Leeds Hospitals Charity, The Darby Rimmer MND Foundation, Irish Motor Neurone Disease Association and My Name’5 Doddie Foundation, the money raised is also being used to build the Rob Burrow Centre for MND. The centre will be a purpose-built facility at Seacroft Hospital in Leeds and will see all the needs of an MND patient and their families met in one building.
A pleasure to award Rob Burrow and Kevin Sinfield with their CBEs at Headingley today. Thank you both for your incredible efforts in raising awareness and funds for Motor Neurone Disease. Both true heroes of the #MND community and the Rugby Football League. pic.twitter.com/vmtePMyVGD
— The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) January 11, 2024
🎖️ Kevin Sinfield CBE
— The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) January 11, 2024
🎖️ Rob Burrow CBE
Huge congratulations Kevin and Rob, well done for all you are doing to raise awareness of Motor Neurone Disease! pic.twitter.com/LHErpW6bj9
The Princess Royal to Visit Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka
THE PRINCESS ROYAL WILL VISIT THE DEMOCRATIC SOCIALIST REPUBLIC OF SRI LANKA
Wednesday 10th January – Friday 12th January 2024
Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal and Vice Admiral Sir Timothy Laurence will visit the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka from Wednesday 10th January – Friday 12th January 2024 at the request of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.
Her Royal Highness will be received by the President of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, His Excellency Mr. Ranil Wickremesinghe, to mark 75 years of diplomatic relations between the United Kingdom and Sri Lanka.
During the visit, the Princess Royal will undertake engagements in Colombo, Kandy and Jaffna to meet local communities and faith groups and celebrate the modern relationship between the two countries.
Previous royal visits to Sri Lanka:
Their Majesties The King and Queen visited the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka in November 2013 for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting. Prior to this, His Majesty visited Sri Lanka in February 2005 in the aftermath of the 2004 Boxing Day Tsunami and in February 1998 to mark the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations between the United Kingdom and Sri Lanka.
As patron of Save the Children, the Princess Royal visited Sri Lanka in March 1995 to learn more about projects supported by the charity.
The King to Host Community and Faith Leaders
HIS MAJESTY THE KING WILL HOST COMMUNITY AND FAITH LEADERS AT BUCKINGHAM PALACE
Wednesday 13th December 2023
His Majesty The King will host a gathering of UK community and faith leaders at Buckingham Palace. Guests will have the opportunity to discuss the challenges their communities face, and the ways in which greater cohesion and fellowship can be fostered among them.
Guests will discuss the vital work of women-led groups and importance of engaging young people in dialogue across the boundaries of faith and community, as well as the provision of safe spaces for communities to gather, before being joined by His Majesty.
The gathering at Buckingham Palace follows the King’s visit to Lambeth Palace Library in November, where His Majesty joined leaders from across the UK’s communities to mark Inter Faith Week, which aims to strengthen relations at all levels.
As Prince of Wales, the King worked for many years to promote tolerance and greater understanding between different faiths and communities. In His Majesty’s first address to the Nation and the Commonwealth, the King spoke of his continued desire to serve everyone with loyalty, respect and love, whatever their background or beliefs.
The Princess of Wales Launches Christmas Baby Banks Initiative
The Princess of Wales launches Christmas Baby Banks initiative
Our experiences, relationships and surroundings during early childhood lay foundations that shape the rest of our lives, and future society. Supporting parents and carers, who are doing their best to provide for their families in challenging circumstances is essential and can have a life-changing impact.
Baby Banks are warm, caring places for families to access equipment, products, clothes and toys to help relieve some of the stresses creating significant pressures on people caring for babies and young children.
For more information on how to access or donate products to Baby Banks this Christmas, visit the Centre for Early Childhood: https://centreforearlychildhood.org/
A film by Will Warr https://instagram.com/willwarr
The Prince of Wales to Attend the Lord High Admiral’s Divisions
THE PRINCE OF WALES WILL ATTEND THE LORD HIGH ADMIRAL’S DIVISIONS
Dartmouth
Thursday 14th December 2023
The Prince of Wales, Commodore-in-Chief Submarines, will attend the Lord High Admiral’s Divisions on behalf of His Majesty The King at Britannia Royal Naval College in Dartmouth.
The parade will see a total of 202 Royal Navy Cadets pass out with International Officer Cadets from Oman, Kuwait, Bangladesh and Trinidad & Tobago. The cadets have undergone 29 weeks of intensive training, which sees them train from civilians into junior naval officers who have been tested in a variety of scenarios: in the classroom, on Dartmoor, the River Dart, and at sea on board an operational warship.
During the parade, His Royal Highness will take the royal salute and be invited to inspect the front rank of the guard and the Royal Marines Band of Plymouth, as well as the ranks of St Vincent, Howe, and St George Divisions.
Following the parade, the Prince will meet staff and cadets on the historic quarter deck, as well as representatives of all the departments and areas at the college. Among them will be cadets who took part in the parade and their instructors.
During the Prince’s military career, His Royal Highness attended a training course at Britannia Royal Naval College in 2008, following on from his father His Majesty The King and his grandfather, the late Duke of Edinburgh, who both passed through the college.
The Queen Visits London-Based Women’s Refuge
THE QUEEN HAS TODAY VISITED LONDON-BASED WOMEN’S REFUGE, THE ASHIANA NETWORK
Wednesday 6th December 2023
Her Majesty The Queen has today visited the Ashiana Network, which operates a number of women’s refuges based in London. The Ashiana Network supports South Asian, Middle Eastern and Turkish women who have experienced traumas including domestic and sexual violence, forced marriage, honour-based violence, financial abuse and coercive control.
Today, at one of the Ashiana Network’s crisis accommodation houses in London, Her Majesty spent time with residents at the refuge who have recently escaped systematic violence and heard about the charity’s pioneering work to end violence against women and girls. The Queen has been a champion of preventing violence against women for more than a decade, including becoming patron of the UK charity, SafeLives, as Duchess of Cornwall in February 2021.
Her Majesty was shown the facility by a refuge resident, before meeting key staff including the Director of the Ashiana Network, Shaminder Ubhi, and representatives from partner organisations such as the GMSP Foundation and the London Borough of Waltham Forest.
The Ashiana Network is community-based project first established in 1989. It grew from a need for safe housing for young south Asian women who were experiencing familial domestic violence and began as a seven-bed house with resettlement support, becoming an independent charity in 1994.
The Network has since expanded to provide a range of services for South Asian, Middle Eastern and Turkish women and girls and is nationally recognised as a high-quality ending violence against women and girls (VAWG) organisation.
The Princess of Wales to Officially Open New Children’s Day Surgery Unit
THE PRINCESS OF WALES WILL OFFICIALLY OPEN EVELINA LONDON’S NEW CHILDREN’S DAY SURGERY UNIT
Westminster Bridge Road, London SE1
Tuesday 5th December 2023
The Princess of Wales, Patron of Evelina London, will officially open the new Children’s Day Surgery Unit on Tuesday 5th December.
The new facility will transform care for children and young people who need surgery by providing everything they need in one place, delivering a family-focused experience which will enable the organisation to treat up to an additional 2,300 children a year. Housed in the state-of-the-art Children’s Day Treatment Centre, the unit has two brand new operating theatres. Families will benefit from a one-day service, with pre-surgery checks, the operation, and recovery all taking place seamlessly in one purposely designed space, on the same day.
During the visit, the Princess will tour the new unit following the journey a child takes on the day of their surgery. She will hear direct from families and staff about the huge impact it is already having and will meet some of the young people who have already had surgery there. Her Royal Highness will also see the space-themed artwork throughout the building, which was chosen and designed in collaboration with staff and patients to match the natural world theme of Evelina London’s main children’s hospital building.
Evelina London cares for around 104,000 children and young people each year across its dedicated children’s services, in hospital and in the community. The Princess of Wales has been patron since 2018.
His Majesty The King to Attend ‘Celebration of Craft’ Reception
HIS MAJESTY THE KING WILL ATTEND A ‘CELEBRATION OF CRAFT’ RECEPTION AT HIGHGROVE
Friday 8th December 2023
His Majesty The King will attend a festive themed ‘Celebration of Craft’ reception at Highgrove, hosted by The King’s Foundation. The King will meet students, tutors, and graduates from the foundation’s craft programmes.
His Majesty will meet graduates and tutors to see the work produced by The King’s Foundation’s Craft programmes, including the Métiers d’Art Fellowship, the School of Traditional Arts, and the Building Arts Programme.
The King’s Foundation believes it is crucial to preserve the wisdom and knowledge embodied in many traditional buildings that have shaped the historical built environment.
Of the 15,000 students who engage in The King’s Foundation’s education programmes each year, a significant proportion are involved in courses that teach traditional arts and crafts and promote the importance of maintaining skills to a high standard.
Graduates from The King’s Foundation’s programmes typically go on to help conserve and create some of the UK’s most important historic buildings, as well as heritage sites further afield, while also acting as advocates for crafts at risk of being lost.
Highgrove is home to The King’s Foundation craft programme, the Snowdon Summer School, the Snowdon School of Fine Furniture, the Métiers d’Arts Fellowship with Chanel, and short courses in fashion, textiles, and traditional building crafts.
Royal Family to Attend ‘Together at Christmas’ Carol Service
MEMBERS OF THE ROYAL FAMILY TO ATTEND ‘TOGETHER AT CHRISTMAS’ CAROL SERVICE AT WESTMINSTER ABBEY
Friday 8th December 2023
Their Royal Highnesses The Prince and Princess of Wales, and other members of the Royal Family, will attend the ‘Together At Christmas’ carol service at Westminster Abbey on Friday 8th December.
Spearheaded by the Princess, and supported by the Royal Foundation, the service is a moment to bring people together at Christmas time and recognise those who have gone above and beyond to help others throughout the year. Linked to Her Royal Highness’ Shaping Us campaign, the service will showcase the hope of new life and why it is so important to build supportive, nurturing worlds around children and the adults in their lives.
Combining traditional and modern elements to encompass people of all faiths and none, the service will see the world-renowned Westminster Abbey choir perform some of the nation’s most beloved carols, alongside musical performances by guests including Jacob Collier, Freya Ridings and James Bay, and a special duet from Beverley Knight and Adam Lambert. Poignant readings will be delivered by speakers including the Prince of Wales, Micheal Ward, Emma Willis, Roman Kemp, and Jim Broadbent. A specially commissioned poem written by Joseph Coelho, the Children’s Laureate, will also be read by Leonie Elliott.
The event will be broadcast as part of ‘Royal Carols: Together At Christmas’, a special programme, airing at 7:45pm on ITV1 and ITV X on Christmas Eve. The broadcast will feature additional content including an introduction from the Princess of Wales and films which bring to life the importance of early childhood and celebrate the remarkable contribution people in our communities are making to support the very youngest members of our society during those crucial early years. These will include contributions from Rio and Kate Ferdinand, Ugo Monye, Andrea & Virginia Bocelli and Dame Sheila Hancock.
The service will see Westminster Abbey filled with sustainable, eco-friendly festive decorations, providing a beautiful Christmas backdrop, nodding to the theme of children and families. New features this year include a Christmas Post Box located outside the Abbey for children to send handmade Christmas cards and best wishes to other children who might be struggling this year.
In addition, guests will be treated to carols and Christmas songs upon arrival from the Action for Children Young Carers Aloud choir, made up of 12 young carers, the youngest of which is just 6 years old.
Guests attending the service have been nominated by Lord-Lieutenants across the nation, in addition to charities associated with members of the Royal Family. They will be joined by those working in the early years space which is a key focus area of the Princess of Wales’s work through the Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood. It will also consist of those who may have had a challenging year, including children and families, or those who might find the winter period difficult.
• Cards posted to the Christmas Post Box will be distributed to a number of children’s charities following the service including Evelina London, British Red Cross, Child Bereavement UK, and East Anglia Children’s Hospice.
• The Action for Children Young Carers Aloud choir was set up in 2017 and sees children and young people from Wales, aged six to 19, come together for a deeper purpose as every member is a young carer who helps look after a member of their family. The charity protects and supports vulnerable children and young people by providing practical and emotional care and support, ensuring their voices are heard and campaigning to bring lasting improvements to their lives. The Princess of Wales has been patron since 2019.
• Running in tandem with the service at the abbey, twelve community carol services will be taking place around the UK across December to provide a moment for people to come together and celebrate community work during the festive season. Hosted by Lord Lieutenants, and supported by The Royal Foundation, these events will be tailored to their local communities whilst also including elements of the Westminster Abbey service. Guests will also receive a special foreword written by the Princess of Wales.
These will be bespoke to each area and will be taking place in:
• Leominster Priory, Leominster, Herefordshire, Thursday 7th December
• Paces School, Sheffield, South Yorkshire, Tuesday 5th December
• St Hilda’s Church, Hartlepool, Co Durham, Friday 1st December
• Chapel of Clifton College, Bristol, Wednesday 13th December
• Uppingham Parish Church, Rutland, Saturday 2nd December
• Ortu Hassenbrooks Academy Stanford-le-Hope, Essex, Friday 8th December
• St Mary’s Church, Charlbury, Oxfordshire, Friday 8th December
• Cheshire Zoo (The Square at the Zoo events space), Chester, Cheshire, Wednesday 6th December
• Newport Cathedral, Wales, Wednesday 6th December
• St Columbs Cathedral, Derry/Londonderry, Northern Ireland, Monday 11th December
• Dunfermline Abbey, Fife, Scotland, Friday 8th December
• St Deiniols Cathedral, Bangor, Wales, Wednesday 6th December
These services have been supported by Hobbycraft and Co-op through the provision of items to enhance guest experiences and help to create magical community events, including refreshments and decorations.
