FINAL preparations are being made for today's historic visit to Bromsgrove by the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh.

It is thought it will be the first time a reigning monarch has made an official visit to the town.

The visit to North Bromsgrove High School and Avoncroft Museum, in Stoke Heath, will be the finale of the Royal couple's day in Worcestershire where they will attend various functions before their departure to London from Birmingham Airport.

In order to save time they will travel to Bromsgrove from Worcester in separate cars as the Duke heads for Avoncroft and the Queen North Bromsgrove High School.

The Queen, accompanied by the Lord Lieutenant of the county and his wife, Sir Thomas and Lady Dunne, will arrive at the school at 2.50pm.

There she will be greeted by Bromsgrove District Council chairman Cllr Ann Doyle (Con, Barnt Green), MP Julie Kirkbride, school governors' chairman Paul Vaughan and headteacher Kevin Peck.

Representatives of the county's education service and school governors will also greet the Queen who will be presented with flowers by two 13-year-old pupils from the school.

The formalities over Mr Peck will invite her to tour the £1.2m Millennium building where she will meet specially chosen students and staff and architects of the building.

Moving through to the old part of the school the Queen will be shown details of the town's links with Armitage Senior Secondary School, in The Gambia.

The school's vice-principal, David Haffner, and members of The Gambia Link Committee will be assembled, as will international students who are currently at North Bromsgrove High.

Children and headteachers from feeder schools to North will be in a line-up and two youngsters will present the Queen with a posy.

Her Majesty will then move on to the school's gym where she will meet students from North, and Catshill's Chadsgrove School, who have taken part in the gruelling Kielder Challenge in recent years, and members of North's Duke of Edinburgh Award Group.

Finally, the party will arrive in the hall where the whole school will be assembled.

The Queen will be invited to sign the visitors' book and unveil a plaque which will later be mounted in the new building.

Head boy Paul Brown and head girl Hannetjie Lowe will propose a vote of thanks to her Majesty and present her with a small gift before joining the rest of the school in singing the National Anthem.

The Queen will be given a send-off by students who will line School Drive when she leaves by car for the airport at 3.25pm.

SEE OUR WEBSITE TOMORROW FOR REPORTS AND PICTURES OF TODAY'S HISTORIC ROYAL VISIT