The long celebratory Coronation weekend in the UK concluded on Monday with a nationwide volunteering initiative entitled the “Big Help Out”, made up of around eight million opportunities for charities and local communities to participate in volunteering initiatives.
Conceived by Buckingham Palace as a tribute to newly crowned King Charles III’s focus on public service, the “Big Help Out” encouraged people from all walks of life to try volunteering for themselves and join the work being undertaken to support their local areas.
While British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and wife Akshata Murty joined the initiative at a lunch club in southern England, Opposition Labour leader Keir Starmer answered calls for the National Health Service (NHS) volunteer responders programme. “This is part of the Big Help Out, tens of thousands of events taking place across the country just like this, respecting and reflecting His Majesty’s long tradition of service,” Sunak told reporters as he chopped vegetables for food being prepared at the MacMillan Lunch Club in Hertfordshire.
“It is community spirit like this that binds our country together. It’s fantastic to be a part of it,” he said. \
The King and Queen finally got a day of rest after the hectic activities of the weekend, with other royals deputed to support various volunteering initiatives. William and Kate, and their children joined volunteers in renovating the Upton Scout Hut in Slough, Berkshire.