Diamond Jubilee: Queen's Hertfordshire visit details confirmed
The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will visit Hertfordshire in June as part of the Diamond Jubilee tour, Buckingham Palace has confirmed.
They will visit Hitchin's Market Square on 14 June before heading to Stevenage where the Queen will open the Lister hospital's new maternity wing.
The duke will visit the town's Business and Technology Centre before the couple travel to Hatfield House.
A Jubilee tree will be planted in the grounds ahead of a reception and lunch.
The Queen's official opening of the new £16m maternity unit comes 40 years after the Queen Mother opened the hospital.
East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust chief executive Nick Carver confirmed that it would be known as the Diamond Jubilee Maternity Unit.
"This is a great honour for the trust and its staff," he said.
In Hitchin, the Royal couple will meet with shopkeepers and view a presentation by local school children.
Lynda Needham, leader of North Hertfordshire District Council, said: "There are many celebrations planned throughout the district for the Diamond Jubilee and the Olympics and this will really be the icing on the cake."