The Princess of Wales is ensuring that young people are at the heart of this year’s Together at Christmas carol service on Friday with Kensington Palace announcing a host of ways that children will feature.
Now in its third year, the Together at Christmas carol service takes place at Westminster Abbey. It is hosted by Catherine with support from the Royal Foundation of the Prince and Princess of Wales and Westminster Abbey, and each year is themed towards a specific subject.
This year’s theme centres on the Shaping Us campaign, which Catherine launched earlier this year in support of her Early Years programming. According to Kensington Palace, “The service will showcase the hope of new life and why it is so important to build supportive, nurturing worlds around children and the adults in their lives.”
Upon arrival, guests will be treated to musical performances by the Action for Children Young Carers Aloud Choir, a choral group of 12 singers who are also young carers, the youngest among them being six-years-old.
In addition to musical guests and prominent speakers, Leonie Elliot will read a specially commissioned poem by Joseph Coelho, the Children’s Laureate.
The décor inside Westminster Abbey will be sustainable and eco-friendly and themed around children and families, and a special Christmas Post Box will be installed outside the Abbey for children to deposit handmade Christmas cards to send to other children around the UK.
According to Kensington Palace, cards collected from this festive post box will be distributed to children’s charities including the East Anglia Children’s Hospice, Child Bereavement UK, Evelina London, and the British Red Cross.
Among the guests—in addition to the Royal Family—are those who work in the early years sector and those “who may have had a challenging year, including children and families, or those who might find the winter period difficult.”
Kensington Palace further announced 12 community carol services running in tandem with Together at Christmas to celebrate the local community and the people who have made the year special. Catherine has written a foreword for each service programme.
Together at Christmas will air on Christmas Eve on ITV, with a filmed introduction by Catherine and short films highlighting the importance of the early years and those who work to support young people around the United Kingdom.
