Staff at Charles’ Prince of Wales office face redundancy as he becomes King

Staff at Charles’ office and home while he was Prince of Wales face redundancy now that he has become King.

Sources told the Guardian and Telegraph newspapers that as Charles moved from his role as Prince of Wales at Clarence House to King down the Mall at Buckingham Palace, many faced losing their jobs.

A palace spokesperson said that job losses were “unavoidable” even though many had worked for Charles for decades.

The letter warning of redundancies, sent by Sir Clive Alderton, the King’s principal private secretary, was said to have left staff “visibly shaken”.

The latter said that “the portfolio of work previously undertaken in this household supporting the former Prince of Wales’s personal interests, former activities and household operations will no longer be carried out, and the household […] at Clarence House will be closed down.

“It is therefore expected that the need for the posts principally based at Clarence House, whose work supports these areas will no longer be needed.”

It came just as many were working around the clock to smooth Charles into his new role as Head of State.

One source told the Guardian: “Everybody is absolutely livid, including private secretaries and the senior team. All the staff have been working late every night since Thursday, to be met with this. People were visibly shaken by it.”

A Clarence House spokesman said: “Following last week’s accession, the operations of the household of the former Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall have ceased and, as required by law, a consultation process has begun.

“Our staff have given long and loyal service and, while some redundancies will be unavoidable, we are working urgently to identify alternative roles for the greatest number of staff.”

[mid-conmtent-banner]

‘Credible’

William had previously said that he would slim down the Prince of Wales role and focus on a handful of charities when he inherited the title after the Queen’s death.

His office said earlier this year that he had plans to slash by half the 100 or so staff employed by Charles as Prince of Wales.

The Mail of Sunday was told: “This approach isn’t a criticism of what has come before but just an acknowledgement of a desire for change.

“It’s about hope and optimism for the future. What is driving the Duke and Duchess in everything they do is urgency plus optimism equals action.

“Many of the causes adopted by the Duke and Duchess, whether it’s Earthshot [the annual prize awarded by the Royal Foundation for contributions to environmentalism] or the early years work, also touches on every other aspect of society so it’s not that they’re excluding other good causes by having a focus.”

They added: “‘There will also be new ways in which to interact with people and become credible and comfortable in five or six core subjects.”