Princess of Wales Carol Service

December 2024

I was nominated to attend the Princess of Wales Carol Service in 2024, after one of the girls in the patrol I was leading at Roverway injured herself, and I had to take her to the hospital.

She and her mum felt that I had gone above and beyond, ensuring that when she injured herself, not only was she looked after, but also supported so she could still enjoy the trip regardless of what had happened.

I got a call from the clerk to the Lord-Lieutenant of North Yorkshire in October, saying that I had been nominated and asking whether I would like to go. I was so surprised, as I believed I had done what any other leader would have done. I, of course, accepted and was sent the event details. I was told I could bring a plus one, so I invited my patrol second from Roverway, since she stepped up when I needed her to, making sure the rest of our patrol were okay so that I could focus on the injured girl.

We received our invitations at the end of November, and it started to feel real.

We arrived at Westminster Abbey on the day to join the massive line of people already waiting. When we got to the front, they checked our tickets and ID and let us in. There were mince pies and an opportunity to write a thank you note to someone, which you could then hang on one of the many trees around the exterior of the building. After that, we went inside to find a seat. There were so many people, including some famous faces like Sir Chris Hoy, Tom Fletcher, Amy Dowden and Hannah Waddingham. It was a gorgeous service with readings from The Princess of Wales herself and Richard E. Grant, and performances from Paloma Faith, Olivia Dean and the Royal Ballet School.

It was an incredible event and a beautiful way to start the Christmas Season.