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What’s on this Platinum Jubilee bank holiday weekend?

The Platinum Jubilee bank holiday weekend starts tomorrow and we’ve put together this special edition of our Residents’ Newsletter to help you plan how you are going to celebrate Her Majesty The Queen’s 70 years of dedicated service to the nation.

Here are just a few of the many events taking place in the Royal Borough:

  • Beacon lighting and fireworks (ceremony starts at 9pm with lighting itself at 9.45pm, Thursday 2 June) – Cambridge Gate, Long Walk, Windsor. Following our country’s long tradition of celebrating Royal Jubilees, Weddings and Coronations with the lighting of beacons, the Platinum Jubilee weekend in Windsor will include the lighting of our Windsor beacon, as part of the National Beacon lighting

  • Windsor Guildhall open days (3pm to 7pm, Thursday 2 June and noon to 4pm Friday 3 June) - Windsor Guildhall. Make a visit to explore the historic building, view stunning royal portraits, listen to live jazz, enjoy a VIP drinks experience, browse a range of products from small local businesses, and write a message of congratulations for The Queen

  • Ox Roast (noon to 6pm, Thursday 2 June) – Bachelors Acre, Windsor. There will be children’s activities, stalls, beer tent and a host of activities and entertainment throughout the day and, of course, the centrepiece, a roasted ox. The event is free to attend. No ticket required

  • Jubilee Picnic in the Park (11am to 10.45pm, Saturday 4 June) - Bring your picnic and enjoy the magnificent surroundings of the Long Walk. Entertainment will take place on stage from 11am to 7.30pm, and there will be a fantastic array of cars on display, with one from every year of Her Majesty's reign

  • Windsor’s Big Lunch (11.30am to 6.30pm, Sunday 5 June) – Bring your friends, family, food and Union Jack flags for a picnic together to watch the national Platinum Jubilee Pageant. Tables are fully booked, but feel free to bring your own tables, chairs and picnic rugs to join in with the Big Lunch celebrations

More information about Jubilee events and activities can be found on the Visit Windsor and Windsor Platinum Jubilee websites.
All welcome to Platinum Jubilee Beacon lighting and fireworks

Celebrate the Platinum Jubilee weekend with the lighting of the Windsor Beacon on the Long Walk by Cambridge Gate tomorrow (Thursday 2 June).

The ceremony starts at 9pm with music and the official proclamation. Everyone is welcome to attend, with the lighting itself taking place at 9.45pm by the Mayor, Councillor Christine Bateson, and Admiral Sir James Perowne, Constable and Governor of Windsor Castle.

A fireworks display over the castle will follow the beacon lighting. Photo: Gill Aspel.
Explore the Windsor Guildhall

The Windsor Guildhall will welcome visitors for two open days as part of celebrations for the Platinum Jubilee:

  • Tomorrow (Thursday 2 June) from 3 to 7pm (an ideal activity before the Beacon lighting ceremony starting at 9pm on the Long Walk)
  • Friday 3 June from 12 to 4pm

You will be able to see the stunning royal portraits of Her Majesty The Queen and beautiful stained-glass windows which were created to commemorate her Diamond Jubilee.

Visitors will be encouraged to leave a handwritten message for the Queen, and anyone looking to support local sellers can browse a range of products from small independent Windsor businesses.

Alongside the open day, a VIP drinks experience on the exclusive, covered outside terrace area is also taking place where visitors can buy Guildhall prosecco, locally sourced beer, and delicious handmade patisserie style treats.

Celebrating our dedicated volunteers

Volunteering is a great way to learn new skills, give back to your community and make a real difference to the people around you.

To kick-start Volunteers’ Week and our “Love Your Community” communications campaign, we’re saying a big thank you to all our dedicated local volunteers.

Volunteers help in so many ways across the Royal Borough, whether as individuals or as part of voluntary and community sector groups.

At the Royal Borough, volunteers help to run services including around 150 wonderful volunteers supporting local libraries and 20 assisting at the Windsor & Royal Borough Museum. Both services are currently appealing for more volunteers. Read the stories of current volunteers and find out more on the RBWM Together website.

We also have around 150 fantastic Community Information Champions, who help to share important news and information with communities, and 25 Ceremonial Wardens, who assist with keeping the public safe and informed at special Royal occasions. Discover more about the role of Community Information Champions on the RBWM Together website.

There are also about 120 Royal Borough Ambassadors. The group started out as Eton Dorney Ambassadors for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic events held at Dorney Lake, and they've continued to assist with other local events ever since.

Could you volunteer?

We are committed to supporting local people to get involved with what matters most to them in their local communities.

We work with Community Learning and Skills Service (CLaSS) to match volunteers to groups. If you're up for volunteering or a group seeking volunteers, see our Volunteering webpage. #VolunteersWeek
More than 50 Platinum Jubilee street parties to take place in the borough

More than 50 street parties celebrating Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum
Jubilee are set to take place in the borough over the extended Bank Holiday
weekend.

Residents will be holding parties in their communities, including Ascot,
Cookham, Fifield, Holyport, Maidenhead, Sunningdale and Windsor from
Thursday 2 June to Sunday 5 June marking her 70 years of service as
monarch to the United Kingdom and Commonwealth.

Read more in our press release about what residents have planned, including
those in Bourne Avenue, Windsor (pictured). To see the street parties and temporary road closures in the borough, please visit One Network.
Fascinating photo exhibition at libraries looks back at bygone Jubilee celebrations

Visitors to the Royal Borough’s libraries can now view a fascinating Jubilee photo exhibition looking back at how local communities celebrated Her Majesty The Queen’s previous milestone jubilees.

The display – entitled 70 Years 70 Photos – is a series of 70 selected photos of street parties, other events and memorabilia dating from Her Majesty’s Silver, Golden and Diamond Jubilees in 1977, 2002 and 2012, as well as a few from this year’s Platinum celebrations so far.

See if you can spot yourself or people and places you might recognise. The full exhibition can be seen during library opening hours until the end of June at Maidenhead Library and Windsor Library, with some of the photos also on display at other libraries.

More information is available in our press release. The exhibition runs until the end of June.

Berkshire Record Office in Reading are also running their 'Happy and Glorious exhibition until Friday 26 August. The exhibition is a celebration of Her Majesty The Queen's connections and association with Berkshire. Featuring a fascinating range of royal-themed memorabilia
Make sure you know your bin collection day

Waste and recycling collection days will change temporarily from Friday 3 to Friday 10 June due to the Platinum Jubilee holiday.

Collections will be carried out as usual tomorrow (Thursday 2 June), with normal collection days resuming from Monday 13 June.

Visit our waste webpage for more information.

All libraries will be closed for the Platinum Jubilee weekend, with the exception of Maidenhead Library which will be open on Saturday 4 June 2022 from 10am to noon.
Pharmacy opening hours

Pharmacies may have different opening times tomorrow (Thursday 2 June) and Friday 3 June.

Opening hours for local pharmacies in Windsor and Maidenhead can be found on the NHS website.
Reminder: Communities can air Queen’s Platinum Jubilee BBC coverage without TV Licence

As communities come together to mark Her Majesty The Queen’s historic Platinum Jubilee over the four-day UK bank holiday weekend, the BBC is offering local communities a special one-off TV Licence dispensation.

Celebratory events will take place throughout the weekend and the Platinum Party at the Palace, a special live event that will bring together some of the world’s biggest entertainers on Saturday 4 June, will be broadcast live on the BBC.

The dispensation will allow those celebrating by arranging events in community centres and streets across Britain, where TV is not usually watched, to screen the live programmes throughout the weekend without needing to purchase a licence.

To learn more, visit the TV Licensing website.
Royal Borough jubilee community spotlight

Here are just some of the upcoming community jubilee events in the Royal Borough:

  • Jubilee celebrations at Norden Farm (12pm to 4pm, Saturday 4 June) – Norden Farm Centre for the Arts. A free Jubilee extravaganza, bringing the community together with music, dancing, market stalls, food and drink. Drummers and a Bhangra DJ from the Dhol Collective will perform live music and the Ceilidh Liberation Front will lead an outdoor ceilidh. Learn more on the Norden Farm website

  • Jubilee party (12 to 5pm, Saturday 4 June) – Holyport War Memorial Hall. Holyport Community Trust is holding a Jubilee party with lots to do, buy and eat inside and outside the hall including trade stalls, face painting, BBQ, prosecco & Pimms stalls, afternoon tea, beer tent, Little Muddy Me play area and more. Profits will go towards the children’s playground rebuild in the hall grounds. Entry is free

  • Fifield Jubilee Street Party (1pm to 6pm, Sunday 5 June) – Fifield Village. Bring your own tables, chairs, food and drink. There will be a 50s theme and prizes for the best outfit and the best-presented table. The Fifield Inn will be supporting the event with a bar and food

  • Cookham Jubilee Street Party (12 to 4pm Sunday 5 June) – Cookham High Street. Grab your friends, neighbours, and picnics, and come along to a street party to celebrate Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee. Entry is free and no booking is required

If you have an upcoming not-for-profit community event or activity you’d like to promote in this newsletter simply send basic information about your event to communications@rbwm.gov.uk and it could be shared with over 20,000 local residents.

You just need to include a brief description, when and where it takes place, and a link to a website/social media page/contact where people can find out more.
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