Queen Steps Down As Patron From Christian Charities
The Queen will step down as patron of 25 national organisations, including a number of Christian charities, at the end of the year.
The roles at bodies such as the NSPCC, Save the Children and Barnardo's will be given to other members of the royal family in a sign of the Queen's scaling back her workload.
Buckingham Palace said the Queen would remain patron of hundreds of charities but will begin to share her work with the rest of her family.
Prince Charles will take over as patron of the Holocaust Day Memorial Trust and the Countess of Wessex will replace her at the NSPCC.
The Duchess of Cornwall will be the new patron of Barnardo's, the children's charity, while the younger royals are given some of the sporting patronages.
Prince Harry will become patron of Rugby Football Union and the Rugby Football League and the Duchess of Cambridge will take over at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club (AELTC) in Wimbledon.
But the move, similar to that made by Prince Philip after his 90th birthday, leaves several bodies without a patron.
Blind Veterans UK, the Royal Institution of Great Britain, the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, the Royal School of Needlework, the Royal African Society, the British Science Association, the Institution of Civil Engineers, the Animal Health Trust and the Royal Geographical Society are all looking for a new patron.
