His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales visits PSNI headquarters and the RUC George Cross memorial garden
On the final engagement of the a 3 day programme His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales visited the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) Headquarters in Belfast.
On the final engagement of the a 3 day programme His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales visited the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) headquarters in Belfast.
The Prince of Wales was greeted by Dame Mary Peters DBE Lord Lieutenant of Belfast and went on to meet Owen Paterson MP, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Mrs Naomi Long MP MLA MP for East Belfast, David Ford MLA minister of the Department of Justice, and Matt Baggott, Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland
Following a private meeting with the Chief Constable, His Royal Highness met PSNI Senior Command Team, a number of injured police officers, PSNI families and their liaison officers as well as serving police officers and staff.
The Prince of Wales, accompanied by the Chief Constable went on to meet a number of student PSNI officers, and dedicated a tree to commemorate his visit before joining the Royal Ulster Constabulary George Cross Foundation (RUCGCF) at its memorial garden.
The Prince of Wales became patron of the foundation following its establishment in December 2001 to mark the sacrifices and honour the achievements of the Royal Ulster Constabulary.
His Royal Highness went on to meet Jim McDonald CBE LVO DL, the foundation Chairman during a tour of the memorial garden.
In the garden His Royal Highness had the opportunity to meet foundation trustees and representatives of the association including the RUCGCF Widows Association, Parents Association and Carers Association. The Disabled Police Officers Association and the Retired Police Officers Association were also represented.
His Royal Highness spent some time in the “area of peace” in the memorial garden where Kate Carlisle MBE, a foundation trustee invited HRH to view a replica stained glass window that was removed from St Anne’s Cathedral in Belfast and presented to the Foundation in October 2008.
His Royal Highness returned to the Memorial Garden where Mr McDonald presented volunteer gardeners, guides, interviewers and members of the RUCGCF Editorial Board.
Following a few words of welcome from Mr McDonald, His Royal Highness accepted a gift from Murray Cameron, Project Manager of the Oral History Project, of a specially bound copy of ‘We Remember’, an oral history of the RUC reflecting the years 1922 to 1970, bringing the engagement to a close.