HRH The Prince Of Wales Visit to Roots June 2007
The Prince of Wales’s visit to Roots and Shoots was the highlight of the 25th anniversary celebrations. After weeks of preparation, the buildings, nursery and wild garden were looking wonderful and the promised rain held off giving the perfect weather for a Royal visit.
During the morning he spent with us he met more than 100 trainees, staff, trustees, funders and volunteers and heard all about our work.
The crowd of local people which greeted the Prince’s car as it arrived in Fitzalan Street was delighted when he went over to meet and be photographed with them.
Linda Phillips and Kate Hoey MP, our patron, showed the Prince round Roots and Shoots. In the plant nursery he visited the polytunnel, greenhouse and apple barn, watching preparations for the Open Weekend and chatting to trainees, volunteers and staff, before going heading through the echium grove and into the wild garden.
First stop was the hives, where beekeeper Clive Watson caused a bit of a buzz by revealing that he never wears gloves when handling his bees. Not something we’d recommend to the heir to the throne!
At the pond, the Prince sat down to watch children from nearby Ethelred Nursery drawing insects before walking across the summer meadow to where Walnut Tree Walk Primary School pupils were studying dragonflies and bees through magnifying glasses.
After a visit to Bett’s garden, next stop was the new Wildlife Study Centre, where trainees, past and present were going through work placement and job opportunities with Andrew Jones, Connextions and Ian Sharpless-Carruthers, Roots and Shoots Employment Liaison Officer. The Prince heard that Buckingham Palace and Grosvenor Estate regularly offer work experience to Roots and Shoots trainees and was pleased to see among the guests the head gardener of Buckingham Palace, Mark Lane and the Grosvenor Estate landscape manager, Stephen Smith.
The shop was looking wonderful and trainees, staff and volunteers were putting the finishing touches to the display of honey and apple juice, ready for Open Weekend.
After being introduced to the architects of the eco-building, the Prince stopped at the office before heading up to the roof terrace to meet funders and trustees and catch a view of Big Ben and the London Eye. En route he watched Ruth Mitchell, Roots and Shoots Education Coordinator, deliver an English lesson, part of their programme.
Under the walnut tree everyone gathered for the unveiling of the beautiful wooden plaque engraved with the words “The Roots and Shoots building was officially opened by HRH The Prince of Wales on 12 June 2007”.
After a few words from Kate Hoey, the Prince spoke of how much he’d enjoyed his visit to Roots and Shoots and how pleased he was to be following in his grandmother’s footsteps.
The late Queen Mother visited in 1988 and having seen pictures from that day, he reflected on how amazed she would have been to see how everything has grown, joking about, “The Cornish echiums which have spread over this sub-tropical part of Lambeth”. He praised the “hardworking team, which is making such a difference to so many people’s lives”.
With a flourish he unveiled the plaque saying, “ I am delighted to declare the new eco-building open and wish you all every success with your marvellous work”.
Please also see the links to the Connexions site, http://www.prospects.co.uk/prospectus/?access=prospects which highlights Andy’s work with Roots and Shoots and the article on the ESF website, http://www.esf.gov.uk/.