Royalty is heading to Banbury

Camilla, The Duchess of Cornwall, will visit Banbury next Wednesday making several stop offs along the way.

HRH will be greeted by Banbury mayor, Cllr John Colegrave, before stopping at the Royal Voluntary Service Cornhill Centre on castle Street.

HRH will meet the CEO of the RVS, Catherine Johnstone and the centre’s staff and volunteer groups, including their youngest volunteers, Amelia, 7 and Bobby, 5.

The Duchess will also meet a representative from The People’s Postcode Lottery and learn of the invaluable funding the Cornhill Centre receives from them.

In the main room, HRH will meet volunteer teachers, Avis Gallager and Joan Sprittlehouse, who will lead an international dance class and invite HRH to join in. The Duchess will then meet with volunteers and members.

Upon leaving, the Duchess will pass the adjacent garden which will soon evolve into the ‘Banbury as an Age Friendly Town’ (BAFT) Project Garden and accept an Age Friendly brooch.

The Duchess is an avid supporter of helping the elderly. HRH works with age-friendly initiatives including Silverline, a helpline for elderly people to combat loneliness and also promotes keeping the older generation active.

In November 2019, The Duchess visited an Active Elderly session, at the Salvation Army in Christchurch, New Zealand and in the following December attended a fan making class with a group from the Royal Voluntary Service at The Fan Museum in Greenwich.

Following the RVS visit the Duchess will then take a tour of Second Time Around, a furniture store and tearoom, which provides training and volunteering opportunities to promote work, social inclusion and independence for adults with learning disabilities, located on the Beaumont Road Industrial Estate.

The Duchess of Cornwall will be met by the project manager, Nathan Wallis with whom HRH will tour the antique shop, visit the eight different shop units and meet stall holders.

HRH will then go on to learn a skill from an apprentice restoring furniture in the workshop before enjoying a cup of tea in the Curiositeas Coffee Shop with sponsors, service users and trustees.

Former students that have learnt their skills and gone on to gain work elsewhere will be in attendance.