That ends our live coverage of the celebrations to mark the 25th anniversary of the Scottish Parliament.

Here are the main headlines from Holyrood:

• The King addressed the Scottish Parliament to mark the 25th anniversary of Scottish devolution, accompanied by the Queen
• This silver anniversary event was due to be held earlier in the year but was delayed because of the general election campaign
• In his address, the King said the parliament had more than thrived and quoted the inscription from the parliamentary mace, "Wisdom, Justice, Compassion and Integrity", saying "these most Scottish of values have remained steadfast"

• Presiding Officer Alison Johnstone - who opened the ceremony - said it was an opportunity to reflect on the last quarter of a century, but also look to the future

• Speeches from the party leaders followed, including one from Russell Findlay who was only elected Scottish Conservative leader yesterday
• First Minister John Swinney told the chamber the Scottish Parliament had "changed lives for the better"
• The event in the chamber included Scottish culutural performances including from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Sistema Scotland, Còisir Alba and Calum McIlroy
• Their majesties also met "local heroes" from across Scotland, nominated by MSPs from their constituencies
• Small protests were held by republicans outside Holyrood and they passed peacefully

Read more on the King's address to Parliament in our full story here.

That's all from the live page team today. Thank you for joining us. The editor was Paul McLaren. The writers were Jonathan Geddes and Craig Hutchison.

Andrew Kerr
BBC Scotland political correspondent

As the royal phrase goes, the King and Queen have “taken their leave” from Holyrood

A crowd of well-wishers had gathered at the front of the parliament building in the hope of meeting the couple.

A drumming band kept them entertained as the monarch chatted to MSPs and their "local heroes" inside the building.

The Queen emerged first, going down a line of people and shaking hands – with the King following.

A boy presented a bouquet of flowers to the Queen.

The Palace of Holyroodhouse is just across the road and it was a short walk.

Staff members from the Royal palace greeted the Queen first on her arrival and then the King.

They will now take off in a helicopter from the Royal park back to the Balmoral estate.

The Royal Standard has been lowered at the parliament.

The 25th anniversary has been marked – a relatively short moment in our ancient nation.

if you're just joining us, the King and Queen have been attending an event at Holyrood to mark the 25th anniversary of the Scottish Parliament.

During his speech, King Charles spoke of his lifelong love of Scotland.

He said Scotland has always had a "uniquely special place in the hearts of my family and myself".

The King talked about how his beloved grandmother was proudly Scottish and how much his mother adored spending time at Balmoral.

Kirsten Campbell
BBC Scotland political correspondent

Image source, Getty Images

The 370 Acts of Parliament that have been created include legislation to abolish tuition fees and bridge tolls, to give communities the right to buy land and to make it an offence if you fail to clear up after your dog.

But not all legislation has been successful.

MSPs had two goes at banning foxhunting. The offensive behaviour at football act, designed to tackle sectarianism had to be repealed and the gender recognition reform legislation was blocked by the Westminster government.

The Supreme Court also ruled that bills to incorporate the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, and the European charter of local self-government into Scots law, overstepped the Parliament's powers in some regards and would have to be reconsidered.

At events to mark the 25th anniversary some people questioned whether Holyrood needed a revising chamber for better scrutiny.

Others have argued the committee system needs beefed up, with elected conveners to ensure MSPs aren't just rubber-stamping the wishes of the government of the day. Holyrood's Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee is conducting an inquiry into what could help the committees work better.

Kirsten Campbell
BBC Scotland political correspondent

Image source, Susan Douglas-Scott

On Hogmanay in 2014, Susan and Gerrie Douglas-Scott made history as the first lesbian couple to marry in Scotland after the Marriage and Civil Partnership Act came into force.

The then First Minister Nicola Sturgeon and the Green party co-leader Patrick Harvie were witnesses to the ceremony.

Gerrie Douglas-Scott reflected "It was a statement of our love, in front of the world, and it really was the world. It went global and we were very pleased with that, in the hope that it would inspire and make other people brave enough to do the same thing."

Susan Douglas-Scott said "We got given civil partnerships as a kind of soft fob-off, but it was never the same, it didn't have the same equal status in law, it didn't have the same social standing."

The couple are celebrants and have gone on to marry many more same sex couples and have been delighted to offer civil partnerships to opposite sex couples.

"That's the way it should be. People should have a choice."

Kirsten Campbell
BBC Scotland political correspondent

In 2002 the Community Care and Health (Scotland) Act introduced free personal care for the elderly.

The charity Age Scotland says it's one of the best things the Scottish Parliament has ever done and that hundreds of thousands of older people have received essential care that allows them to stay in their own homes.

It warns though that there are big challenges ahead with long waiting lists for people to be assessed for care, and local authorities who don't have the funding to deal with an ageing population.

99-year-old Jess Waugh from Edinburgh has been able to stay in her own home with the support of carers who pop in four times a day. She gets help with washing and dressing and says: "I know there's somebody coming in if I need them and it just cheers the day up a bit".

Elizabeth Del Giacco began working as a carer during the Covid pandemic.

She still sees some clients even though she’s returned to her previous job.

"It’s a real privilege to look after Jess. I learn so much from her, she’s nearly 100, I’ve been looking after her for four years and it’s honestly a privilege.”

Kirsten Campbell
BBC Scotland political correspondent

One of the boldest pieces of legislation passed by the Scottish Parliament is considered to be the smoking ban. The Smoking, Health and Social Care (Scotland) Act came into effect in 2006 and prohibited smoking in enclosed public spaces likes bars and restaurants.

Prof Amanda Amos, the emeritus professor of Health improvement at Edinburgh University, is an expert in tobacco cessation policies.

She says it made "a heck of a difference. We saw an immediate decline in the number of heart attack admissions for hospitals in both smokers and non-smokers."

The number of children needing hospital treatment for asthma attacks reduced and there was a positive impact on babies too, with a reduction in the number of premature births and low birth-weights.

Longer term Professor Amos says the policy led to "denormalisation", with children growing up in a world where it wasn't normal to be exposed to smoking when you went out.

"Children's attitudes to smoking really have changed and it's something that they think now, for most of them, is not for them"

Kirsten Campbell
BBC Scotland political correspondent

A number of the speakers in the parliament referred to the flagship policies devolution has brought us over the years.

Some have been groundbreaking, others more controversial, but the Scottish Parliament has put its stamp on some significant pieces of legislation that have made a difference to the lives of Scots.

Asiyah Javed runs the Day Today store in Stenhousemuir with her husband, Jawad.

During the Covid-19 pandemic, Asiyah worked tirelessly to support those in the local community, making up food parcels and hot meals for the elderly and vulnerable.

They also gave out free packs of facemasks and sanitiser.

Asiyah told BBC Scotland News: "We spent over £40,000 just on hand care packages."

With the help of the local community, she and her husband have continued to send out more than food packages every week.

She says was shocked to be nominated as a local hero by her MSP, but adds she feels "happy and proud".

Let's take a look at some of those local heroes attending the ceremony today.

Michael Coutts has been the public face of the Dogs Against Drugs charity in Shetland for over 20 years as dog handler/project manager.

His commitment to the dogs he trains for drugs detection work in Shetland can be measured in the more than £1m worth of illegal drugs that the dogs have detected.

The King and Queen are now being introduced to a group of "local heroes" who have been nominated by their MSPs for their extraordinary contribution to their communities.

Morag Kinniburgh
BBC Scotland

Today is not just an opportunity to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Scottish Parliament, it's also an opportunity to protest.

There are around two dozen anti-monarchy protesters at the foot of the Royal Mile.

They are armed with megaphones and have “Not My King” & “Down with the Crown” yellow and black banners.

So far, it’s a peaceful, if occasionally noisy, protest.

Donald Smith says: "They’re parasites. This is all publicity, PR for the royals to give the impression of being important”.

His fellow protestor Gillian Grant adds: “This should be a civic celebration.”

Image source, PA Media

King Charles certainly seemed to enjoy today's performances!

There was beautiful Scottish music, song and poetry.

Oh, and a little bit of politics too.

Scottish Parliament Piper Stuart McMillan MSP plays Auchmountain’s Bonnie Glen to mark the departure of Their Majesties (performed live from the Members’ Garden and broadcast into the Chamber).

The King and The Queen, accompanied by the presiding officer, then leave for the main hall where they will meet with groups of local heroes as they go.

The presiding Officer escorts the Royal couple to sign the Visitors’ Book before escorting them onto the Horse Wynd through the Guard of Honour of young people from across Scotland.

A total of 56 young people from across Scotland will participate in the event from 12 youth organisations.

The presiding officer closes the meeting of Parliament saying: "Thank you your Majesties for sharing this significant milestone with us. Thank you to our fantastic musicians and peformers."

The performances conclude with Calum McIlroy, the BBC Radio Scotland Young Traditional Musician of 2024.

The Aberdeenshire native performs the folk song Ca' The Yowes To The Knowes, collected by Robert Burns.

We also from Alex Cole-Hamilton, the final opposition party leader to address the chamber, and says the Scottish Parliament can be a "cathedral of ideas".

"This chamber can be transformative," the Scottish Lib Dem leader adds.

"On behalf of the Scottish Liberal Democrats, I would like to thank Your Majesties for your continuing support for the work of this Parliament, and send our good wishes for His Majesty's continuing recovery."

A rousing rendition of Highland Cathedral by members of the charity Sistema Scotland is warmly appreciated in the chamber.

Scottish Greens co-leader Patrick Harvie then speaks, saying that when he first attended the Parliament as a youth worker, the impression he had was of an institution with a "doors open" philosophy.

However he adds that the "journey is far from complete" and that the parliament is not yet strong enough to fight off attempts to undermine it. He calls for more policies to redistribute wealth in future.

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar says: "I extend our thanks to His Majesty the King for his presence and words here today."

Sarwar reflects on the late Queen opening the Scottish Parliament in 1999.

"I hope today, we can all recommit our resolve to deliver the true potential of devolution and the true potential of Scotland."

He says he firmly believes that "Scotland's best days lie ahead of us".