Diamond Jubilee
The Diamond Jubilee will take place in 2012. This will mark 60 years of the Queen's reign. The Queen came to the throne on 6 February 1952 (her Coronation took place on 2 June 1953). The only other British monarch to celebrate a Diamond Jubilee was Queen Victoria in 1897.
The celebrations will centre around the first week in June. The Government has announced its plans for a special four-day Jubilee weekend which would allow communities time to come together to celebrate and commemorate the events of the last 60 years. This will entail putting back the late May bank holiday to Monday 4 June and adding an additional Jubilee bank holiday on Tuesday 5 June.
The Government is working closely with colleagues from the Department for Education with regards to the practicalities of the effect an extra bank holiday will have on schools. The regulations on the length of the school year for 2011/2012 are currently being revised so school children and teachers can benefit from the extra bank holiday.
Detailed plans for the Diamond Jubilee celebrations in 2012 will be announced closer to the time. A programme of events centred around the Jubilee Weekend in June will be organised by Buckingham Palace. The Government will be responsible for co-ordinating the Government led aspects of the celebrations.
A Diamond Jubilee Medal will be issued to mark the Diamond Jubilee. Who will receive it is under consideration and further details will be released nearer the time.
Greenwich is to be given Royal Borough Status. This status is purely honorific and granted by the Sovereign on Ministerial advice as an exceptional mark of Royal favour. It confers no additional funding or powers. The Queen has agreed to confer the honour in recognition of the very close links between Greenwich and the Monarchy as well as Greenwich's global significance.
Her Majesty and the Duke of Edinburgh will make visits to all regions during May and June. It is hoped that London will host two separate one-day visits and that the locations will be as widespread as possible.