The Duchess of Cornwall visits hospital and organic cheese farm in Bath

Today Her Royal Highness visited the Royal United Hospital (RUH) in Bath, before visiting the Bath Soft Cheese Company.

At the hospital, The Duchess opened the new Royal National Hospital for Rheumatic Diseases (RNHRD) and the Brownsword Therapies Centre. She was given a guided tour of the new purpose-built centre and shown some of its facilities, including the hydrotherapy pool, specialist treatment areas and physiotherapy gyms. 

The new centre will see around 25,000 patients a year and support them in their recovery from episodes of illness or injury, or to manage long-term conditions.

Whilst at the hospital, The Duchess also attended a reception with the Forever Friends Appeal, the fundraising charity for the RUH who helped to raise funds towards the new RNHRD and therapies centre.

During the reception, Her Royal Highness said:

It’s lovely to be able to come here and see what’s been done for the new centre and I am incredibly impressed by everything. The hydrotherapy pool looked extremely tempting! There seems to be a lot of very very happy patients and it has a very welcoming atmosphere.

I know all you people out there do so much to raise money for this hospital…thank you so very much for contributing so much for these wonderful new buildings.

Later, The Duchess visited Bath Soft Cheese Company on a family-run farm based in Kelston. The Padfield family have been farming for four generations, and now produce four signature organic cheeses with milk from their own herd of around 160 Holstein Friesian cows.

During the visit, Her Royal Highness met schoolchildren learning about the cheese-making process, as well as viewing the process herself.

The company was recently crowned ‘Supreme Champions’ at the 2019 International Cheese Awards.