More than 1,000 charity volunteers to help people pay respects to the Queen

Charity

More than 1,000 charity volunteers will help people as they queue to pay their last respects to Queen Elizabeth II, government figures show.

St John Ambulance will provide 600 of those volunteers, to support people waiting to see the Queen as she lies in state at Westminster Hall.

The SJA says 2,000 of its volunteers offered to help.

Queen Elizabeth II died on Thursday, aged 96, and the government is planning for queues of up to 12 hours as people wait to see her coffin.

There will also be 170 volunteers from The Salvation Army and 180 from the suicide prevention charity Samaritans, according to data from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport.

The Scouts will provide 120 adult volunteers, and there will be 140 from the British Red Cross and 40 from the Princess Royal’s Volunteer Corps.

They will be joined by 1,500 military personnel and about 100 volunteers from the Civil Service.

Mike Gibbons, commissioner for operations at SJA, where the Queen was a patron, said: “In our planning for this sad occasion, we estimated we’d need around 1,000 volunteers, but more than double that have said they can make themselves available.

“As the sovereign head of our parent charity, the Order of St John, the Queen had a long history with SJA, and we are not at all surprised we have had such a positive response from our fantastic people willing to help.  

“Our charity’s volunteers and employees are out there helping keep people as safe as possible as they pay their respects. 

“I know all St John people will take great pride in doing so, and I’d like to thank all of them for their efforts.”

SJA has also set up eight first aid stations along the queue’s 10-mile route.

Products You May Like

Articles You May Like

Sue Willoughby Guests On TriVersity Talk! With Host Wendy Stuart 7 PM ET Wednesday, October 30th, 2024
Burt Ward Guests On “If These Walls Could Talk” With Hosts Wendy Stuart and Tym Moss Wednesday, October 30th, 2024