Employees at Clarence House, the former residence of King Charles III, were reportedly informed on Monday they could lose their jobs as the new monarch moves to Buckingham Palace.
Up to 100 employees at Charles’s former residence received notification despite working long hours to smooth his ascension to the throne. Private secretaries, the finance office, the communications team, and household staff are among those who received notice, including those who have worked for the new monarch for decades.
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“The change in role for our principals will also mean change for our household,” Sir Clive Alderton, the king’s top aide, said in a letter obtained by the Guardian. “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.”
The notification came during a service of thanksgiving for Queen Elizabeth II at St Giles’s Cathedral in Edinburgh, Scotland, on Monday, reportedly upsetting staff members who believed they would transition to working with the king at Buckingham Palace. No formal decisions have been made on those moving to the new palace, although certain staff providing “direct, close, personal support and advice” to Charles and his wife, Camilla, the queen consort, will keep their posts.
A consultation period is expected to begin following the funeral of Elizabeth next week. Some employees who get laid off will be allowed to search for employment across all royal households, while others will be offered assistance in finding new jobs externally and receive an “enhanced” unemployment payment beyond the statutory minimum, according to the outlet.
Clarence House reportedly has a staff of 101 employees, compared to 491 employees at Buckingham Palace, according to the 2022 Sovereign Grant report. Of the 101 employees, 31 are in the king’s private secretary offices, including private and assistant private secretaries, research, and administrative staff. Another 30 are in his treasury department, while 28 members comprise his household staff, including four chefs, five house managers, three valets, dressers, and a couple of butlers, per the Guardian.
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Charles became the United Kingdom’s latest monarch Thursday following the death of the country’s longest-reigning monarch, Elizabeth, who died after 70 years on the throne. The queen’s funeral is scheduled for Monday at Westminster Abbey. She will then be laid to rest at Windsor Castle.
