HIS Royal Highness The Earl of Wessex made a special royal visit to a Worcestershire firm on Thursday.

Prince Edward visited DRPG's base in Hartlebury, toured the firm's dedicated Covid testing centre and speaking with many of the team about how the pandemic had affected the business.

The communication firm says it suffered a 60 per cent drop in sales during the pandemic, with the Earl hearing how the extended the virtual event side of the business and was able to carry out the biggest investment programme in the company’s history.

The Earl was also invited to plant a tree to mark the occasion, alongside members of our sustainability team who were onsite creating a new initiative to encourage biodiversity and increase environmental awareness on the 4.5acre studio complex.

Dale Parmenter, the group's chief executive officer, said: “Despite the challenges of the last 14 months the DRPG team have really taken sustainability to another level.

"Our CSR Charter cements our position in really driving this into the business agenda, we all have a responsibility to positively contribute to our communities, society and the environment.

"As a business we are stronger and more prepared than ever to take on the challenges and opportunities in the future”

Andrew Davies, a manager at the firm, added: “The CSR Review 2021 provides transparency to our stakeholders and really holds us to account in the way we operate. Having passed the recent external international sustainability audit with the highest marks attainable, we’re proud of our progress in leading the industry with what we have achieved, however we recognise there is more to do and we hope our journey can inspire clients, suppliers and the wider industry to collaborate towards making a meaningful difference.”