Queen Elizabeth II: Norfolk Wildlife Trust invited to funeral

Norfolk Wildlife Trust chief executive Eliot Lyne said the charity had a "special and long relationship" with the Queen

A wildlife charity that will attend the Queen's funeral said it represented a "strong part" of what she believed in and cared for.

Norfolk Wildlife Trust (NWT) said it was proud to have had the Queen as its royal patron.

The charity was established in the same year Queen Elizabeth II was born, 1926, and she became its patron in 1952.

Chief executive Eliot Lyne said the charity was "honoured" to be invited to Monday's state funeral in London.

He said the charity had a "special and long relationship" with the late monarch and felt "lucky" to be among the charities for which she was a patron.

Mr Lyne said he would be attending the funeral on behalf of the charity, having received a call from Buckingham Palace.

Queen Elizabeth II opened the Ranworth Broad visitor centre for the (then) Norfolk Naturalist Trust's 50th anniversary, and it was filmed by BBC Look East

Norfolk Wildlife Trust said the Queen (pictured on walkabout at Ranworth in 1976) had been a "wonderful ambassador for conservation and charity work"

Cley Marshes on the north Norfolk coast is one of the Norfolk Wildlife Trust's reserves that will remain open on Monday for visitors to have a "quiet moment"

The NWT cares for more than 50 nature reserves and other protected sites - several of which are close to the Royal Family's Sandringham Estate in west Norfolk.

He said it was a "great honour and incredibly surprising" to be invited to Westminster Abbey.

"All of the people there are representing aspects of her life, the international, the national, the local and the community," he said.

"We're a relatively-small community organisation here in Norfolk, but a strong part of what she believed in and what she cared for."

'Wonderful ambassador'

The Queen became the charity's patron on 23 June 1952 - not long after her accession in February.

NWT said Britain's longest-reigning monarch and family had supported them with annual donations and royal appearances, including attending the opening of the wildlife centre at Ranworth in The Broads in 1976.

The 96-year-old charity, formerly known as the Norfolk Naturalist Trust, said that during her 70 years of service, the Queen was a "wonderful ambassador for conservation and charity work".

"She leaves a lasting legacy across the globe, particularly here in Norfolk, the location of her special retreat at Sandringham," it said.

It added that all of its sites would be open on Monday "if people want to come and be in nature, spend some time in nature, seek solace from nature and have a quiet moment".

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