Overview
There is no such thing as a typical day for The Prince of Wales. But developing practical initiatives, backing projects, hearing from beneficiaries and thanking supporters are all regular elements of The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall’s lives.
Each year The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall conduct hundreds of engagements throughout the United Kingdom and overseas.
Many of their working days are spent meeting the public, celebrating the achievements of local and national initiatives, and visiting their own charitable projects.
The Prince’s work has three principal elements: undertaking royal duties in support of The Queen, working as a charitable entrepreneur, and promoting and protecting national traditions, virtues and excellence.
The Prince’s average day is very varied but is likely to include any combination of official royal engagements and work that happens behind the scenes.
The Prince’s engagements are diverse in their range and reflect His Royal Highness’s interest in all aspects of British life. They could include for example: visiting an inner city school to meet young people taking part in a Prince’s Trust programme; presiding over military events, presenting medals, meeting soldiers and their families; showing British business leaders around rural communities to see problems first-hand and show them ways they can help; delivering a keynote speech about the need to preserve the environment; meeting different faith communities to encourage inter-faith dialogue; visiting a charity of which he is Patron; opening a new community building; attending fundraising gala performances or premieres; or hosting receptions or dinners for organisations he wishes to support.
The Prince of Wales sees his work with the Armed Services as one of the most important parts of his role and he has a special relationship with 12 regiments in this country and 10 in the Commonwealth.
The Prince is kept informed of the activities of his regiments and asks to be briefed on a regular basis, especially when they are on deployment. As Colonel-in-Chief, The Prince often visits his regiments on bases in this country and abroad, meeting soldiers and their families, and writes to bereaved families and those who have sustained injuries.
He presents service medals wherever possible, often inviting soldiers and their families to Clarence House for a medal presentation and a reception. The Prince also visits injured servicemen, with regular visits to the Royal Centre for Defence Medicine at Selly Oak in Birmingham and Headley Court in Surrey.
Invitations to The Prince of Wales for all sorts of engagements come in from all over the world. These are processed by his office, with The Prince’s diary planned many months in advance.
The Prince will often make as many as four or five appearances in a single day.
A day in the life
The Prince of Wales begins most days working through his papers and talking to his advisers.His daily correspondence can include State papers, memos from his staff and briefings from the many charitable organisations which The Prince supports. The Prince makes regular speeches, records video messages, and writes forewords or messages for organisations whose work he wishes to support. The Prince of Wales takes a great interest in the correspondence that he receives from members of the public, reads a good selection of it and takes note of what issues are raised. Although it is not possible to read and respond to all of the letters he receives, The Prince writes as many letters in response as he can and asks his staff to respond to others on his behalf.
On a day like the one described below (20th January 2009), The Prince travelled by Royal Train and used the time it took to travel to his first destination to catch up on his paperwork and prepare for the day ahead.
10am
The Prince of Wales visited Hill Holt Wood social enterprise to meet staff and disadvantaged young people working on a building project at Hill Holt Wood, Norton Disney.
11.30am
The Prince of Wales, who is Patron of The Lincolnshire Churches Trust, met representatives of The Lincolnshire Churches Trust, The National Churches Trust and restoration workers at St Helen’s Church, Brant Broughton. The Prince viewed the restoration work at St Helen’s Church and met those involved with the project.
12noon
The Prince of Wales, who has a keen interest in meeting different faith communities, met Quakers and local residents at The Quaker Meeting House, Brant Broughton.
1.30pm
The Prince of Wales, as President of Business in the Community, visited The Thorold Arms in Marston which has been participating in The Prince’s ‘Pub Is The Hub’ initiative. The Prince visited the shop which has been created in the pub as part of The Prince’s initiative and chatted to local residents.
2.50pm
The Prince of Wales, as Patron of The Almshouse Association, met staff and residents at Browne’s Hospital, Stamford.
3.20pm
The Prince of Wales met pupils and staff at Stamford Endowed Schools, Stamford. The Prince toured the school hall and the chapel where he met pupils and staff and watched a brief performance.
4pm
The Prince of Wales met local community groups at The Town Hall in Stamford.The Prince met representatives from a number of local organisations who support the local community as well as meeting some members of the Town Council.
4.40pm
The Prince of Wales, President and Founder of The Prince’s Trust, met young people who have participated in programmes run by The Prince’s Trust, in particular the Team programme at The George Hotel in Stamford.
Official entertaining is an important part of The Prince of Wales’s role, perhaps hosting a reception for an organisation during the day and a dinner later in the evening.
In the evening Their Royal Highnesses also regularly attend concerts, theatre shows, royal premieres or gala evenings.
These are often fundraising events for charities with which The Prince and The Duchess are affiliated or, as they are both great supporters of the arts, they may also attend in a private capacity when commitments allow.
Overseas tours
Overseas tours often follow a similar pattern, with a busy day of engagements followed by receptions or working dinners in the evening. The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall are among the United Kingdom's most important ambassadors.
Every year, Their Royal Highnesses travel abroad at the request of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office to further British diplomatic interests, raise the UK’s profile in the country visited and promote British excellence.
Overseas visits enable The Prince to familiarise himself with a wide range of international issues and to meet many Heads of State and senior officials. While overseas, His Royal Highness, supported by The Duchess of Cornwall, undertakes a number of engagements each day which are usually packed into a tight schedule to better fulfil British Government aims. For example, in February 2007, Their Royal Highnesses visited 5 Gulf states (Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain and Abu Dhabi and Dubai of the United Arab Emirates) in 10 days. The visit was aimed at strengthening ties with key British allies in the area.
Click here to read the latest Annual Review, which details the working year of The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall to 31 March.
