Coronation of The King and The Queen Consort

To mark this momentous occasion, residents across Warwickshire are being invited to get involved in a weekend of celebrations from Saturday 6 to Monday 8 May 2023.

The weekend will comprise of three key events:

The Coronation, 6 May

The Coronation ceremony, which will see The King crowned alongside The Queen Consort, is centred around a solemn religious ceremony and has remained largely unchanged for over a thousand years. For the last 900 years, the ceremony has taken place at Westminster Abbey in London and is conducted by the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Download the free Coronation Toolkit which features some fun activities, recipes, and music playlist ideas to help you with your Coronation celebrations.

Warwickshire Libraries

The following Warwickshire Libraries will be open on Saturday 6 May, and you’ll be able to watch the Coronation coverage on the public library PCs: Leamington, Kenilworth, Lillington, Wellesbourne, Southam, Alcester, Shipston, Bedworth, Nuneaton, Rugby, Whitnash, and Wolston.

You’ll also be able to drop-in and pick up a commemorative seed bookmark from library staff (subject to availability) and enjoy teas and coffees which will be available during library opening hours.

Please note that Market Hall Museum and Stratford, Warwick, Atherstone, Coleshill, and Polesworth libraries will be closed on Saturday 6 May, and to check with your local Community Managed Library for their opening hours on this date.

The Big Lunch, 6 – 8 May

A Big Lunch can be anything from a small gathering in a garden or park to a larger party with trestle tables down the middle of your street. The idea is that by starting simple, and bringing people together to share friendship, food and fun with a Big Lunch, all sorts of ideas and projects can follow. It can lead to people doing more within their community and tackling the issues that matter to them most. You can also add your Big Lunch event onto the Eden Project Communities’ Big Lunch map.

Find out what you need to do ensure your celebrations are safe and that they adhere to local guidelines, including permission for street closures, by visiting your local district or borough website.

Free car parking is available at all of Warwickshire’s Country Parks and greenways throughout the Coronation bank holiday weekend.

Throughout the weekend, at Kingsbury Water Park and Ryton Pools Country Park, families will be able to enjoy royal-themed trails in which children can search for clues, with those who complete the trail to be entered into a prize draw to win a toy swan. The remaining country parks and greenways will be hosting self-led coronation trails in which children can search for pebbles featuring royal-themed designs. 

On Sunday 7 May, as part of The Big Lunch, when the nation is being encouraged to get together with their families, neighbours and friends to share friendship, food and fun, Kingsbury Water Park will be offering circus-style entertainment for people of all ages, including face painting, circus skills workshops, and magicians. There will also be a market at which stallholders will be selling locally produced goods and artisan products. Alongside the market will be a variety of food concession stands selling burgers, ice-cream and more, in addition to the onsite café offering food and refreshment. The Echills Wood Railway will be operating miniature stream trains as normal, with tickets costing as little as £1.50 each. 

Similarly on the Sunday, Ryton Pools Country Park will be offering a selection of activities to enjoy including a brass band and face painting, in addition to the onsite café being open and serving a BBQ.

Read more information about The Big Lunch

Read more information about the Coronation celebrations at Warwickshire’s Country Parks

The Big Help Out, 8 May

On Monday 8 May, you are being invited to step forward and support The Big Help Out, an official Coronation initiative. The Big Help Out encourages all of us to have a go at volunteering, whether it be for an hour, a day, or on a regular basis to lend a hand, make a change, and help the people and good causes in our local communities. 

Thousands of volunteering opportunities are already available to find on The Big Help Out app, which is available to download for free from the AppStore or Google Play. You can use the app to search for nearby volunteering opportunities, to organise and register your own volunteering events, or download free content from The Big Help Out toolkit to spread the word and show support.

At Kingsbury Water Park, there will be the opportunity to meet regular country park volunteers to find out what they do and how to get involved in outdoor volunteering. You are invited to put on some old clothes and get your hands dirty, guided by regular volunteers and rangers to carry out practical conservation and maintenance work on the day. Although completely free to take part, this volunteering event requires booking, which can be done via the Warwickshire Country Parks Eventbrite page.

At Ryton Pools Country Park between 10am and 3pm, you can take part in a ‘BioBlitz’, working together to find and identify as many species as possible. Bug collection pots will be provided, and rangers will be on hand to help identify the findings, provide information about the creatures, and help log the survey results.

You are also invited to attend a special drop-in Volunteer Fair at Market Hall Museum in Warwick between 10:30am – 1pm on Thursday 11 May. The Fair, which is hosted in partnership with Warwickshire Community and Voluntary Action (WCAVA), will have plenty of friendly volunteers from a variety of organisations in attendance to chat with you about their roles, and to help everyone find out about the many different ways to get involved in volunteering across the county.

To explore the many volunteering opportunities available in Warwickshire online, visit:

• Warwickshire County Council’s volunteering web page
• Warwickshire Community and Voluntary Action’s website
• Heritage and Culture Warwickshire’s volunteering web page

You can also find out more on the County Council website and The Big Help Out website.

Video - The Coronation Weekend in Warwickshire

What’s happening across the County

There are lots of different events taking place over the Coronation weekend across Warwickshire. Why not go along to your local one and join the celebrations?

Alcester

Sunday 7 May - Alcester Court Leet Street Party at High Street

Street party from 1pm - 6pm.

Bedworth

Saturday 6 May - Community celebration event at Bedworth Miners Park

Main stage with entertainment all day for all the family.  Fireworks at 9pm as the finale.

Bidford

Saturday 6 May - Warm Hub screening at Crawford Hall

Warm Hub event with screening of the Coronation on big screen. 

Sunday 7 May - Street party at Bidford

Street party with food and entertainment from 2pm - 6pm.

Coleshill

Friday 5 May - Family Friendly Quiz Night at Coleshill Village Hall 

7pm - 10.30pm. Quiz starts at 7.30pm. 

Saturday 6 May - Music and food night at The Croft, off High Street

4pm to late evening with the Coleshill Town Band and other music on a raised outdoor stage.  Bring your own picnic food.  Fireworks display at the end of the evening.

Sunday 7 May - Children and Family Fair at Town Hall, High Street

Children's entertainment and stalls in the main hall of the Town Hall, with refreshments. 

Sunday 7 May - Coronation church service at St Peter and St Paul's, Church Hill 

Monday 8 May - Volunteer Thank You at Town Hall, High Street

Mayor's invitation event to representatives of voluntary groups. 

Leamington

Saturday 6 May - Community celebration event at Royal Pump Room Gardens

Big screen, live music, food, drink and much more. 

Nuneaton

Sunday 7 May - Community celebration event at Riversley Park

Main stage with entertainment all day for the family. Fireworks at 9pm as the finale. 

Rugby

Saturday 6 May - Party in the Park at Caldecott Park 

The event includes live music, street entertainers, inflatables and the chance to watch the coronation service on a giant screen broadcast live from Westminster Abbey.

Southam

Sunday 7 May - Community celebration event at Grange Hall

Royal Memories Tea Party.

Stratford Upon Avon

Sunday 7 May - Community celebration event at Town Hall

Tea and cake with the Mayor, 3pm - 5pm. 

Warwick

Saturday 6 May - Stage with live music and festivities at Market Square

Stage with live music and festivities.

Find out more about events and any planned road closures.

Useful links

• Find your local district or borough council
• Government advice on organising a street party
• Official Coronation website
• Planned road closures in Warwickshire
• A full list of events in North Warwickshire can be found on the borough council website

Important information

Public liability insurance 

There is no law that says you must buy insurance for a voluntary or community event, but you might want to make sure you are covered in case something goes wrong. Having public liability insurance can give you peace of mind. 

Risk assessments 

Please ensure you have a record of risks and how you are planning to control them. The Health and Safety Executive risk assessment examples has some useful information and example templates you can use. 

Fireworks 

If you intend to use fireworks as part of the celebrations, then please ensure that you do so safely and with consideration for those around you .More information can be found on the celebrate safely web pages.

Fire Safety 

The Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 applies to virtually all premises, including most buildings, structures and open spaces. This includes outdoor events. The ‘Order’ requires the organiser to make sure that a fire risk assessment is undertaken by a competent person. The risk assessment must identify the fire risks that can be removed or reduced, general fire precautions and people at special risk. More information about fire risk assessments.

If you are having guests stay in your home for the Coronation celebrations, please ensure that you have working smoke alarms on each floor of your home and that all guests know what the escape plan is and where house keys are kept. Warwickshire Fire and Rescue’s fire safety information will help with your planning.

Parking 

If you are holding a street party or having guests over then please ensure that they park safely and legally. With lots of people at home the risk of fire can increase, so emergency vehicles need to be able to get through.

Taking care of the environment

Getting together doesn’t need to damage the planet. Ask guests to bring reusable cups and cutlery, avoid single-use packaging and plastic decorations and set up areas for recycling, food compost and general waste, so that it can be sorted later and put out with for your usual recycling collection.

Alcohol licence 

Licences are only required if alcohol is sold. At a private party, sharing drinks with your neighbours does not require a licence. 

Entertainment licence 

If your street party is a private party for residents and the music is not advertised in advance to attract people, and you’re not making money from the event, then there is no need for a licence for your music, whether live or recorded.

Noise 

It may be courteous to let neighbours and businesses in the area know what your plans are in advance of the event, especially if your party goes into the evening. Leave a phone number with them so they can call if they have any questions or concerns. 

Food 

If it is a private party, you do not need a licence under the Licensing Act 2003 to sell food (unless you wanted to only sell hot food and drink after 11pm). Remember, you can always ask your neighbours to bake a cake, make a sandwich or bring food to share with one another. This is also a good way to bring different groups of people together. 

Barbeques 

If you are using a barbeque, please ensure that it is situated well away from fences, sheds, trees, shrubs and garden waste. Never use petrol or paraffin to start or revive your barbeque and only use recognised lighters or starter fuel on cold coals. 

Sky lanterns 

We do not recommend their use due to the fire hazards and risks they pose to property, crops, livestock and the environment.

Tombola/raffle 

If the tombola/raffle tickets are sold on the day and the prizes are not worth more than £500 in total then it will be exempt from gambling regulations (however, if tickets are sold in advance of the event, you will need a lottery registration). Any proceeds from the tombola/raffle must go to a good cause, such as a charity or even covering the cost of your party. Alternatively, if you did want to raise some money for a good cause, you can always ask people for donations. 

Clean up afterwards 

If you are having a street party, you will need to clean up the are once it’s finished. It’s your street, your party, so keep your local area clean and tidy. Let people know in advance what time the party will finish and have a section set aside for bin bags and recycling.

If at an outdoor location, including our country parks, we would ask to keep the area tidy and clear up any mess made. If bins are full, please bring bags with you so that you can take the rubbish home to dispose of.

Most importantly enjoy the celebrations, get involved and help to celebrate our new King and Queen.