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Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee Tea Party
Over eighty uniformed young people assisted with the Platinum Jubilee celebrations in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea on Sunday 5th June, when four hundred senior residents from the Royal borough came to Kensington Town Hall for a Jubilee Afternoon Tea for the Queen.
The welcome tone was set on arrival by an uplifting steel band and in the foyer a display of colourful Jubilee celebration cakes. There was also the chance to have a fun photograph taken with a regal backdrop alongside an image of HM The Queen.
Army, Air and Sea Cadets, Scouts, Guides, Fire Cadets and Volunteer Police Cadets – all members of YOU London (Youth Organisations in Uniform) – acted as escorts and hosts to the partygoers. Earlier each had been presented with a special YOU London volunteer badge by Lady Elizabeth Arnold, Representative Deputy Lieutenant for the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and Chair of the Jubilee Steering Committee, ably assisted by Lady Victoria Borwick, military liaison officer for the Royal borough who co-ordinated the YOU London participation.
Eager guests were escorted through a cadet guard of honour into the Great Hall for one of the best indoor street parties in the capital. The gentle murmur of excitement grew as the senior citizens took their places and chatted with one another, interrupted only by the beautiful sounds of the London Fire Brigade (LFB) choir.
Councillor Gerard Hargreaves compared the afternoon, introducing Lady Elizabeth Arnold; the Mayor, Councillor David Lindsay; Leader of the Council, Councillor Elizabeth Campbell; and local MPs Felicity Buchan and Greg Hands. Once the sandwiches and scones had been eaten, an RAF Air Cadet and Volunteer Police Cadet bore two large Jubilee cakes to the stage, which were cut by Lady Arnold and Councillor Lindsay.
As empty plates were cleared away by the volunteer army of helpers, it was time for an old-time sing-along led by the LFB choir, with much hearty participation and flag waving by the guests, especially during the favourite, Dame Vera Lynn’s ‘We’ll Meet Again’. A free raffle, with the finest prizes of course, was a hit with everyone with much laughter and cheering.
Finally, the uniformed young people lined the stage as those who could stood for the National Anthem led by the LFB choir. The young people then formed a guard of honour as the senior citizens departed, taking with them an old-fashioned party bag and some fabulous memories of a wonderful Platinum Jubilee Tea for the Queen.
