Royal Death and National Mourning Protocol

Royal Death and National Mourning Protocol

Marking the Death of a Senior National Figure

November 2014

Version Control
This Protocol was updated in November 2014 to reflect more recent guidance. The Protocol will be reviewed again in November 2015.

Foreword

The purpose of this Protocol is to ensure that the District Council has arrangements in place in the event of the death of a senior Royal or a senior National figure. Elements of this Protocol may also be appropriate when marking the death of, for example, another member of the Royal Family, a Prime Minister or former Prime Minister, a serving Member of Parliament, the Chairman, Council Leader or other prominent person. See Annex 3 for more details.

Plans to mark a death should be implemented only when a formal announcement has been made; reports from news agencies must be treated with caution.

Table of actions needed

Action needed / Additional information / Person responsible for action
1. Inform Chief Executive and relevant staff to implement protocol
Relevant Councillors and staff as follows:
Chief Executive
Strategic Directors
Head of Commercial Partnerships and Strategic Commissioning
Chairman of the Council
Leader of the Council
Leader of the Main Opposition Groups
Head of Customer Services
Communications Manager
Caretaker(responsible forflag flying at Council offices)
Also inform Town Councils (Felixstowe, Woodbridge, Aldeburgh, Saxmundham, Leiston, Kesgrave, Framlingham) / The Chief Executive has the authority to implement this Protocol
Contact and Mobile numbers are listed at the end of this document
Chief Executive to decide whether to implement a meeting of relevant Councillors and Staff / Chairman’s Secretary
Chief Executive
2. Flags to be flown at half mast
From the announcement of the death until 0800 hrs on the morning following the state funeral of the sovereign, except on Proclamation Day (see item 8).
On Proclamation Day, flags will, at the start of the day, be flying at half mast. All flags will then be flown at the mast-head from 1100 hrs on Proclamation Day to coincide with the reading of the Principal Proclamation and until 1300 hrs the following day.
Chairman’s Secretary (or nominated officer)to oversee flags being flown at half mast in liaison with staff listed.
This must happen as soon as possible following a public announcement - even if it is a public holiday or weekend.
If the mourning event is not a Royal Death, a decision will need to be made on whether and where flags should be at half mast, responding appropriately based on national advice. / Flags to be put immediately to half mast atany Council office which normally flies a flag. Flag should be the Union flag. If 2 flagpoles are available theCouncil flag may also be flown at half mast but must not be higher than Union flag. See Annex 1 for the correct procedure for flying a flag at half mast.
The current locations of flagpoles on Council premises are Melton Hill, Woodbridge
Local arrangement
If a serving Prime Minister dies in office, the Union flag will be flown at half mast immediately. For other prominent people, the flag will fly at half mast only on the day of death and on the day of the funeral. / Chairman’s Secretary
Caretaker

3. Provide a link to an e-condolence book. Add article to website homepage.

Communications Manager to add a homepage article on the Council’s website (to be based on the templates below) linking to e-condolence book. / Link from SCDC website to national e-condolence book.
To be added to website as soon as possible / Communications Manager
4. Issue public condolence bookon the first working day after the death.
A condolence book, or sheets of paper laid on a neat blotter. This should be situated at the main public Council building:

• Council Offices, Melton Hill, Woodbridge

Communications Manager to arrange:-

• A notice on the Council notice board at Melton Hill with the times and location of when the book(s)are available for signing and send out press release with this information, including information on the Council’s website
• A notice of condolence based on the template provided below
• An agreement should be made in advance as to how this will come into effect if the event is out of office hours but the reaction must be immediate.

Presentation of table:

Book to be placed on tables draped with white cloth and picture of Royal concerned (if relevant). A small vase with flowers to be placed next to the photo. / Mourning boxes containing:

• Condolence book(s)
• White tablecloth
• Vase (flowers to be added)
• Picture frame (picture of relevant Royal to be added)

One of these should be in held in each building which will have a Condolence Book.
Make arrangements to ensure flowers are available as soon as possible (see below)
Books of condolence should be closed at the end of the day following the day of the funeral. They will then form a part of the Authority’s archive, and referred to in any letter of condolence sent by the Chairman of the Council or Leader. / Communications Manager / Chairman’s Secretary (or nominated officer) / Caretaker
Chairman’s Secretary or nominated representative to be responsible for organising each Condolence Book to be available for the public.
Communications Manager
Chairman’s Secretary to provide mourning box items
Chairman’s Secretary/ Customer Services staff to arrange placing of these and purchase of flowers.
5. Communications Manager to issue a press release,formal notice or quote of condolence on the first available working day.
Communications Manager to issue a statement to staff on the first available working day.
Communications Manager to ensure that the Chairman of the Council has a draft form of words available both at home and in the office in the event of press enquiries. / A draft quote is listed at the end of this document.
Communications Manager to issue a statement to all Members of the Council on the first available working day, outlining arrangements to be made for provision of condolence books for the public to sign etc. / Communications Manager
Communications Manager
Communications Manager/
Chairman of the Council
6. Dress code during mourning period – advice for Councillors and officers representing the Council at external and committee meetings
It will be left to individual discretion whether Councillors or officers wish to adopt any specific form of mourning dress, for example the wearing of black rosettes or black arm bands. / Subject to guidance from the Palace on the official mourning period.
A period of mourning starts on Proclamation Day.

• In the event of the death of Her Majesty The Queen there will be a Royal Mourning period of 1 month.

• In the event of the death of HRH The Duke of Edinburgh or HRH The Prince of Wales, mourning starts from the day of death until the day of the funeral. There will be a national mourning period of 9 days (taking into account one full week between the day of death and day of the funeral).

/ Chief Executive
Chairman of the Council
Communications Manager

6a. Events during the period of mourning

From the day of the death until the day after the funeral, careful thought should be given to the types of events and activities which civic heads should host or attend, taking account of the mood of the nation, and cancelling/postponing as appropriate as a mark of respect.
The Chairman may, however, wish to consider arranging a church service, where local people can join in an act of remembrance. / Review the programme of engagements undertaken by the Chairman to ensure it is appropriate in a time of national mourning. / Chairman’s Secretary

7. Silence

Communications Manager to monitor the media for guidance and publicise two minute’s silenceaccording to advice.
Chairman’s Secretary/Communications Manager to organise any silence ceremony held. Invite Chairman, Chief Executive, Councillors and general public to participate. / On the death of the Sovereign or other senior member of the Royal Family there will be a two minutes silence at 11.00am on the day of the funeral.
Civic heads may wish to lead the silence in an appropriate public place, and will need to decide how the beginning and end of the silence will be marked (drum roll, bugle, etc. / Chairman’s Secretary/
Communications Manager

8. Proclamation – following guidance from the Palace

On the death of the Sovereign, the new Sovereign is immediately proclaimed at Accession Council. Proclamation Day is the day following the death of the Sovereign. / Once the proclamation is made at St James’s Palace in London at 11.00am, the Heralds then travel to Belfast, Edinburgh and Cardiff the following day to make the proclamation in the three other countries of the UK.
8a Proclamation Day Nationally
Officers responsible for the raising and lowering of flags to arrange the following:
On Proclamation Day, the Union flag will be flown at half mast (as it has been since the announcement of death) until 11.00am.
At 11.00am it will be raised to full mast until 1300 the following day, when it will return to half mast until after the funeral. This will apply to all civic buildings with flags. / A public proclamation of the new Sovereign is read out as soon as possible, first at St James’s Palace and then at other locations. This is Proclamation Day. / Caretaker (re flags)
Chairman of the Council (re reading Proclamation)
Communication Manager
Chairman’s Secretary
8b) Proclamation Day Locally
Subject to guidelines announced by BuckinghamPalace and the Privy Council at the time, the following actions will be taken to organise a proclamation the same day.
The accession proclamation will be organised by the Chairman’s Secretary and promoted by the Communications Manager.
The proclamation should be read either by the Chairmanof the Council or by the Chief Executiveat an agreed venue in the principal area of the authority.
The public will be notified in advance that a Proclamation will be read through the local media/Council’s website etc. Consideration to be given to crowd control/risk assessment undertaken and consultation undertaken with the Police and other agencies as appropriate.
The Chairman’s Secretarywill invite all Councillors, Chief Executive and Directors to observe the Proclamation. The Lord Lieutenant, the High Sheriff and the local MP could also be invited. The Lord Lieutenant should be asked to send a Deputy Lieutenant if appropriate. / High Sheriffs will make the Proclamation at County level (usually accompanied by the Lord Lieutenant). Following County level proclamation, local authorities may make the proclamation.
The wording of the Proclamation will be available on the Buckingham Palace website, and the High Sheriff will also have a copy.
Proclamation to be readout at the Council Offices, Melton Hill, Woodbridge. / Chairman’s Secretary/
Communications Manager
Chairman of the Council / Chief Executive
Communications Manager
Chairman’s Secretary
9. Closure of condolence books
Condolence books will usually close at the end of the day after the funeral. / Books of Condolence are essentially a local record of the sentiments expressed by local people on the death of a national figure. As such, they should form part of the authority’s archive, so that future generations are able easily to gain access to them and find out the way in which national events were marked in the area.
It is simply not feasible for every Book to form part of the Royal Archives. However, in a letter of condolence from the Chairman of the Council reference could be made to the Book of Condolence and its existence in the local archives which then ensures that when that letter goes into the Royal Archives it acts as an effective cross reference / Chairman’s Secretary
9a. Letters of Condolence
It is usual, in the case of the death of a member of the Royal Family, for letters to be sent to the Private Secretary of the deceased, asking that condolences be passed to the next of kin and other members of the family (except in the case of the Sovereign’s death, in which case they should be sent to the new Sovereign’s Private Secretary asking that condolences be sent to the new Sovereign). One letter of condolence only should be sent. / Leader of the Council

Phone numbers including mobiles

Chairman of the Council – Cllr Bob Snell / 01728 62147607831 204200
Chief Executive – Stephen Baker / 01394 44434807795 666802
Assistant Chief Executive – Arthur Charvonia / 01502 52360607725 498018
Head of Commercial Partnerships and Strategic Commissioning – David Gallagher / 01502 52300707785 710630
Leader of the Council – Cllr Ray Herring / 0172874633707885 249218
Leader of the Liberal Democrats –Cllr Christine Block / 01394 411660
Leader of the Labour – Cllr Mike Deacon / 01394 211146
Leader of the Independents – Cllr Barry Slater / 01728 648559
Chairman’s Secretary–Louise Lennard / 01394 44431607789 243264
Communications Officer – Steve Henry / 0139444436207833 441342
Caretaker – Jonathan Pratt / 07899 952458
Web Officer – Chris Doncaster / 01394 444305
Lord Lieutenant – Lord Tollemache / 01473 264004
MP for Suffolk Coastal – Therese Coffey / 01394 285218

Annex 1 – Flying Flags at Half Mast

Full details of the correct way to fly flags at half mast is given on the website of the Flag Institute (

It is important that the guidance given by the Flag Institute is adhered to strictly.

Half-mast means the flag is flown two-thirds of the way up the flagpole, with at least the height of the flag between the top of the flag and the top of the flagpole. Flags cannot be flown at half-mast on poles that are more than 45° from the vertical, but a mourning cravat can be used instead (see the Flag Institute’s website for further details).

When a flag is to be flown at half-mast, it should first be raised all the way to the top of the mast, allowed to remain there for a second and then be lowered to the half-mast position. When it is being lowered from half-mast, it should again be raised to the top of the mast for a second before being fully lowered.

When a British national flag is at half-mast, other flags on the same stand of poles should also be at half-mast or should not be flown at all. Flags of foreign nations should not be flown, unless their country is also observing mourning.

Annex 2

Form of words to use in the event of a Royal Death

Official Statement Templates

These will be issued by the Communications Manager on the first available working day. Civic Head (Chairman of the Council) statements may need to be made at short notice and placed on the Council’s noticeboard and the Council’s website as well as being given to the press, if out of working hours. In both cases the template provided can be used as a guide, and out of hours phone numbers can be used to contact Civic and Communications Officers.

External Statements

Royal Death

The Councillors and Officers of Waveney District Council are deeply saddened at the news of the death of… Our thoughts are with the Royal Family at this time.
This could be followed with information about the flags and the books of condolence, decisions on civic events, etc.

Internal statement to staff

This would pass on the official statement made externally and any arrangements made for staff, eg to enable them to observe two minute’s silence. It would be issued on the first available working day via email/on the intranet.

General Notes to all of the above:

On the occasion of the death of a senior member of the Royal Family, clarification on local arrangements should be referred to the Chair of NACO or the County’s Lieutenancy Office.
In addition the Royal website should be consulted
For any advice not immediately available from the website or the NACO website the local Lieutenancy should be consulted. The Lord Lieutenant’s number is shown above.
This protocol also applies on any other occasion where Her Majesty has given special command, eg the funerals of members of the Royal Family, Prime Ministers and ex-Prime Ministers of the UK, or foreign rulers.
The protocol may also be adapted for use in the case of a national disaster or an incident which has led to a large number of deaths, for example a train crash or terrorist attack. Guidance should be sought from either the Royal or the Government web site in the case of a national disaster on the flying of the Union flag at half mast.

Responsibility for keeping this document up to date will rest with Chairman’s Secretary, who will arrange for its review each year. This document will be filed with the Chief Executive, the Democratic Services Manager and the Communications Manager. In the event of a major emergency incident, the emergency plan would take precedence over this protocol.

Annex 3

This Protocol sets out the action to be taken in the event of the death of:

H.M. The Queen

H.R.H. The Duke of Edinburgh

H.R.H. The Prince of Wales

H.R.H. The Duchess of Cornwall

H.R.H. The Duke of Cambridge

H.R.H. The Duchess of Cambridge

H.R.H. Prince George of Cambridge

H.R.H. Prince Henry (Harry) of Wales

H.R.H. The Duke of York

H.R.H. The Earl of Wessex

H.R.H. The Princess Royal

H.R.H. The Countess of Wessex

Elements of this Protocol may also be appropriate when marking the death of, for example:

Another member of the Royal Family

The Prime Minister or a former Prime Minister

Serving Suffolk Coastal Members of Parliament

The Chairman or Leader of the Council

A serving Member of the Council

Other prominent persons

It may also be adapted for use in the case of a national disaster, or an incident which has let do a large number of deaths, for example a train crash or terrorist attack.

Annex 4

Protocol in the case of the death of Members of the Council

(In all cases personal discretion to be used as to attendance at funeral and adoption of mourning dress, for example the wearing of black rosettes or black arm bands or ties).

1.Chairman of the Council

• Flag to be flown at half mast from the day of death until sunset on the day of the funeral
• With the family’s agreement, a senior Member of the Council should follow the coffin bearing the Chairman’s Chain on a black cushion, or if a cremation, the Chain should be displayed on a black cushion near to the coffin
• Communications Manager to issue a press release, formal notice or quote of condolence on the first available working day
• A minute’s silence to be held at the next meeting of Full Council.

2.Vice Chairman of the Council