Cadets to meet Princess Anne

THE Princess Royal will be shown first-hand how to save a life when she visits Grimsby later this week.

Cadets from St John Ambulance will host Princess Anne at their camp in New Waltham on Thursday.

She will present awards to cadets and volunteers from St John Ambulance who are holding their annual camp at Cherry Garth, New Waltham.

The grandmother-to-be will fly into King George V Stadium in Grimsby on Thursday at about 3pm before heading to the camp site.

She will be wearing her hat as Commandant-in-Chief (Youth) of St John Ambulance.

The cadets, aged between 10 and 17, and the Badgers, who, at between 5 and 10 are the youngest St John Ambulance volunteers, will show the Princess Royal how they could be the difference between a life lost and a life saved in situations such as heart attacks, choking and collapse.

St John Ambulance's regional youth services manager in the North East Dr Philip O'Donnell arranged the visit. He said: "Regional Youth Camp is always a busy time, but what could beat the excitement this year of a visit by a member of the Royal Family, especially due to her connection with St John Ambulance as Commandant-in-Chief (Youth)?

"We hope Her Royal Highness will be impressed by the skills that our youth volunteers have been developing and, of course, it will be excellent that she will be able to hear inspiring stories from a few of our cadets and Badgers about how they have managed to put their first aid training to use and save lives."

The accident and emergency doctor, who is based at Hull Royal Infirmary, said the youth camp is an annual event allowing cadets and Badgers from across the region the chance to meet and take part in outdoor activities and training together.

Princess Anne will be welcomed by the Mayor of North East Lincolnshire, Councillor Peggy Elliott.

"I will be delighted to welcome Princess Anne, who is no stranger to Grimsby," she said.

"I met her seven years ago at the Queensway children's daycare centre and many years ago she opened the Grimsby Telegraph offices.

"I admire her because she is a workaholic and she is soon to be a grandma, what with her daughter Zara expecting."

Princess Anne's daughter and her husband Mike Tindall are expecting their first baby in the New Year.