09 Oct HRH The Princess Royal visits Shropshire – September 28th 2020
HRH The Princess Royal visited Shropshire on September 28th arriving by helicopter to make a private visit to Harper Adams University, Edgmond, where she is Chancellor. Her Royal Highness was hosted by The Lord-Lieutenant of Shropshire and the university’s Vice-Chancellor, Dr David Llewellyn who said
“It was our pleasure to welcome back Her Royal Highness, who has always taken a keen interest in our work to develop sustainable farming methods and technologies. Working with the restrictions required to keep everybody safe, we were able to showcase our work on autonomous farming systems in the field and introduce the Chancellor to key team members and a small number of our students.”
HRH The Princess Royal visits Harper Adams University
From Harper Adams University Her Royal Highness travelled to Telford to visit the charity Landau who are celebrating their 25th anniversary this year.
Landau supports over 3000 people across the West Midlands helping them in to work and training. Landau showcased their Marches Construction Ready Partnership Training Hub in Trench and Her Royal Highness was hosted during her visit by Deputy Lieutenant Jenny Wynn and the chief executive of Landau, Mrs Sonia Roberts.
Her Royal Highness met several students and trainees who showcased their new skills at the Landau’s Trench base and then went on to visit two recently completed houses in Arleston which have been built by Wrekin Housing Group who work in partnership with Landau.
Jenny Wynn DL commented after the visit;
“It is difficult to put into words the impact that this visit and HRH’s clear interest had on these young people, suffice to say they were buzzing!”
The Princess visiting the Landau Charity in Telford
From Arleston Her Royal Highness travelled to Telford town centre to formally open the Telford Central Footbridge, a £10m project funded by the Department for Transport. The award-winning pedestrian footbridge, the ‘Silver Swallow’ connects the railway station with the town centre spanning two dual carriageways and the main railway line.
The official opening by HRH The Princess Royal was also attended by the Mayor of the Borough, Cllr Amrik Jhawar and official representatives and Cabinet Members from the Council as well as the bridge design and construction project group. Charlotte Toogood, a 13yr student at Newport Girls School who chose the bridge’s ‘Silver Swallow’ name which won the most support in a public vote, was presented to Her Royal Highness who also unveiled a plaque to commemorate the moment.
HRH Princess Royal with Anna Turner, Lord Lieutenant & The Mayor of Telford Cllr Amrik Jhawar
Following the opening of the bridge, accompanied again by The Lord-Lieutenant of Shropshire, Her Royal Highness visited the Maxell Cherry Gardens in Telford Town Park. The Friends of the Telford Town Park, who were winners of a Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service 2020, met Her Royal Highness and took her on a guided tour of the Gardens with an insight into its history. Her Royal Highness planted a commemorative tree and chatted to the volunteers before being driven back to her helicopter which was waiting at Donnington.
Cllr Shaun Davies, Leader of Telford & Wrekin Council said
“The Princess Royal’s visit to Telford highlights the impressive progress our borough is making, driving innovative, award-winning projects, and attracting major investment into business and infrastructure.
The visit also shone a spotlight on the very strong and active community we have here, with so many volunteers working together to make our borough a great place to live in.
It’s a richly deserved recognition for the ‘Friends of the Town Park’s tireless work in conserving this gem of a park, after being honoured with The Queen’s Award earlier in the year.”