Historic Royal Palaces, the charity responsible for Hampton Court Palace, hopes that the new dedicated spaces and facilities of the education centre will increase the number of education visits accommodated annually at the palace by 50% to over 100,000 by 2010.

During his visit The Prince of Wales will tour the new education facilities meeting schoolchildren from Long Lane Primary School, Reading, Holy Cross School, New Malden, and Fern Hill Primary School, Kingston-upon-Thames enjoying education activities including getting dressed for the Tudor court, discovering interesting and unusual objects that belonged to King Henry VIII, and writing poetry to mark the official opening ceremony.

The new facilities will enable Historic Royal Palaces to diversify education programmes offered, reach new learning audiences, from toddlers to life-long learners, and encompass a broader range of subjects more relevant to secondary, tertiary and adult education audiences. The centre will also improve the on-site learning experience for the 55,000 primary school pupils studying the Tudor period who already visit King Henry VIII’s famous palace annually,

The Clore Learning Centre, largely made possible by a generous £1 million donation from the Clore Duffield Foundation, is the first educational hub dedicated to learning at Hampton Court Palace. Previously education groups were accommodated in a variety of poorly equipped rooms disparately located throughout the vast palace complex, which created confusion for teachers and students alike.

This is the sixteenth major Clore Education Centre funded by the Clore Duffield Foundation and the first outside of a museum or gallery. The Foundation has also funded 40 small learning spaces across the UK. The Clore Learning Centre at Hampton Court Palace has also received generous private donations and grants from The Garfield Weston Foundation, The Bradbury Foundation, The Coleman Charitable Trust, The Arnold Burton 1998 Charitable Trust and The Chapman Charitable Trust. Historic Royal Palaces has contributed £900,000 to the project.

The Prince of Wales will also meet artists, contractors, donors and Historic Royal Palaces’ staff responsible for education at Hampton Court Palace all of whom have been involved in the creation of the Clore Learning Centre.