Communities encouraged to celebrate Coronation of King Charles III

Wiltshire Council is encouraging communities to get together to celebrate and mark the occasion with local events involving as many people as possible.

A special Coronation Concert will be held on Sunday, 7 May 2023, whilst neighbours and communities are being encouraged to share food and fun together with the Coronation Big Lunch on the same date. Following the allocation of an additional bank holiday on Monday, 8 May, it has been dubbed “The Big Help Out”, with members of the public encouraged to volunteer within the local community.

With the official Coronation less than three months away, residents of Wiltshire are being encouraged to get involved in this truly historic occasion, and Wiltshire Council has collated useful information and guidance to help people with their arrangements.

If anyone is planning an event that needs any involvement or permission from the council, such as road closures, then relevant applications need to be submitted to the council at least eight weeks before it’s due to take place.

There can be a quick turnaround (two weeks) for straightforward applications on Wiltshire Council-owned land/green spaces/parks, but due to the timescales required for statutory processes, late applications for road closures and licensable activities will not be considered.

For events occurring in the extended Bank Holiday period (6 May – 8 May 2023), applications would ideally need to be with the council no later than 12 March 2023.

People are also asked to consider what licensing applications they may require, such as for particular entertainment or to sell alcohol, and to submit any applications required as soon as possible. More information can be found at www.wiltshire.gov.uk/highways-king-charles-coronation.

There will also be the opportunity to celebrate the Coronation weekend by viewing or taking part in various national events that will take place over the extended Bank Holiday weekend.

The national celebration events include:

HM Lord-Lieutenant of Wiltshire, Mrs Sarah Troughton, said: “It is a real honour to be His Majesty The King's representative in Wiltshire.

"I do hope that local residents and communities will join me in celebrating His Majesty's Coronation in Westminster Abbey, which will be a truly historical occasion. The Coronation Service itself on Saturday 6 May will be a magnificent, religious and spiritual event and I hope will be of interest to people of all faiths and none.

"I want to encourage everyone to join in the celebrations by putting on their own Coronation Big Lunch events and street parties on Sunday 7 May followed by the Big Help Out activities on Monday 8 May, aimed at encouraging volunteering over what will be a very memorable weekend.”

Cllr Richard Clewer, Leader of Wiltshire Council, said: “We are looking forward to the Coronation of His Majesty The King and Her Majesty The Queen Consort, and we want to ensure that our local communities have the resources and information they need to mark this historic celebration.

"As well as the national celebrations we know that there will be lots of residents looking to hold their own celebrations, which is why we’ve created the webpage with a whole host of useful information for hosting a street party event.

"We will also update this page as more information is released by the Royal Family for the national events.”

More information about the Coronation weekend can be found at https://coronation.gov.uk/