Merseyside woman receives invite to King Charles’ coronation at Westminster Abbey

A Merseyside woman has received the invitation of a lifetime, to attend King Charles III’s Coronation ceremony as one of only 2,000 guests invited to Westminster Abbey.

Rainhill Postmistress, Sara Barlow, will be mixing with royal family members and close friends of the King.

Some seats have been set aside for members of the public who do great work for their communities and Sara is one of those lucky recipients, whose name was randomly selected from a list of people who had recently received New Year or Birthday Honours.

In the five years that Sara has been Postmistress for Rainhill Post Office, she has made a huge difference to her community and last May, she was elected as a Parish councillor for the Merseyside village.

Sara’s reaction: “I never, ever, thought that I would have been invited to the King’s Coronation. It’s mad! When the email came through one Saturday afternoon from the Honours Committee, I read it and couldn’t believe it. I kept laughing and smiling with joy and amazement. It’s such a privilege to be invited,” Sara said.

She added: “All guests have to be in London the night before ready for the Coronation the following morning and have to take their seats long before the service. I could be sitting next to royalty, a politician or a celebrity or someone like me who does voluntary work for their community.

“I realised that this clashed with a planned Friday night out to enjoy cocktails with lots of girlfriends. I had to phone up to explain that I wouldn’t be able to go out with them after all. I couldn’t turn down the coronation invite!”

About Sara: Last May, Sara was invited to a Royal Garden party at Buckingham Palace in recognition of her receiving a British Empire Medal in the Queen’s Birthday Honours in June 2021.

Sara was also chair of the Rainhill Community Support Group which was set up to support the people of Rainhill during the Coronavirus outbreak with lots of local volunteers.

Even before the pandemic Sara had already gained deserved praise as Postmaster for Rainhill for her care for customers, especially those who are deaf, living with dementia, living alone or those with mental health issues.

Rainhill coronation celebrations: Rainhill village will be fully decorated for the coronation. Two of the Rainhill Community Support volunteers, Edna North and Linda Walker, used to knit treats to help brighten up people’s lives during the pandemic. They also knitted an ornate Postbox topper for the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. Now they are planning another special Coronation creation.