Princess Anne visits Gosport for a pair of charity events in a return to the Solent

Her Royal Highness Princess Anne came to Gosport having visited Portsmouth Naval Base earlier this year.

The Princess Royal attended the Gosport Community Hub at Brune Park Community School to have a guided tour around the new hub, which was funded by the Royal Navy and Royal Marines Charity, of which she is the patron.

The hub, which was given £400,000 to set up, provides personalised support for 435 service children whose family members are serving in the forces, as well as offering courses and support to community families.

Princess Anne received a warm welcome from school children from Gomer and Rowner Junior School, who raised their flags in a mark of respect, despite getting drenched in the rain.

The Sea Cadets were also present and stood to attention as her Royal Highness entered the site, and she spoke to them and the schoolchildren.

Georgina Mulhall, executive headteacher for the Gosport and Fareham Multi-Academy Trust (GFM), said: ‘First of all, it is a really exciting morning and I think it is really important to note that the Royal Navy and Royal Marine Charity were brilliant and we are just so grateful.

‘It is an honour and a privilege to have Her Royal Highness to join us today. She is the Royal Patron of the RNRMC and we are delighted that she has made time to come down.’

The morning at the school consisted of a tour around the hub and there were then refreshments during a networking period, where Princess Anne spoke to figures in the community who have helped come together to make the hub possible, as well as the future plans to maintain the success and support offered.

Her Royal Highness also made a speech before unveiling a plaque for the hub, which will sit there for all to see.

Dame Caroline Dinenage attended the visit and she was delighted at the new hub, particularly due to the high population of service families in the area.

She said: ‘It is so exciting. It was the Princess Royal who gave me my damehood and she said to me how fond she is of Gosport and so I said I would have loved to welcome her back, and she then told me she was coming for this, which is lovely.’

The Princess also visited the royal gardens at the school, where there are chickens and plots of land for the children to get involved in.

Chris Willis, executive headteacher at the GMT, said: ‘She was interested to know how we are supporting service families and skills development which I think is quite close to her heart, so she was very keen to know what work we’re do.

‘We are grateful that she was really keen to talk to some of the children and some of the cadets and what they want for their future careers.’

After the event at Brune Park, the Princess went to Haslar Marina, where she recommissioned the Boleh Yacht, which was designed and created after the Second World War by Royal Navy Commander Robin Kilroy who was sent to Singapore to ‘keep the peace’.

SEE ALSO: Princess Anne to visit Gosport to open new community hub for military families at Brune Park School

After an adventurous life and numerous owners, the vessel was returned back to her founding family after George Middleton, Robin Kilroy’s nephew, and his brother bought the boat back in 2008, when they began a restoration project to start her new life at sea.

The brothers then established an apprentice trust which saw a number of people working towards getting her in good condition, and the Boleh Yacht is now being used to help disadvantaged children, families and veterans experience sailing on a ‘unique’ vessel.

The event, which was held at the new restaurant at the marina, welcomed the nephews of the original designer, the people who worked on the restoration, people who work on the boat now and forces children that have already been on the Boleh.

George Middleton said: ‘It is an amazing honour to be recognised as an effective charity, given the history of the boat and finally getting established.

‘The Princess Royal was very interested in sailing boats anyway, particularly vessels that are this unique and that have had a brilliant history. She is very easy to speak to. She understands children, she understands sailing, she understands the complexity of operating a vessel. It is a privilege that she has made the time for us given how busy she is.’

The event included the Princess being given a tour of the yacht by the team that currently operate it for charity programmes and projects, followed by a speech of thanks from George on behalf of the trust.

A group of children from Mayfield School were there with their teacher Ben Richardson, who said that ‘it is great. It is really good, it is great that there are so many charities involved and also get the opportunity to get the students to come along as well.’

She then took part in a traditional bottle ceremony where she poured cider over the bow of the ship as a mark of it being recommissioned, and she then unveiled a plaque to honour this day.

Craig Coupe, operations director for Boleh Trust, said: ‘It is an honour, it is really cool and also I think from a charitable point of view, someone like Princess Anne is a brilliant person to come and recommission the boat. It is a fantastic day.’