Bee entrepreneur meets the Queen to mark 40th anniversary of the Prince's Trust

Peter Higgs met Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Charles at The Prince’s Trust Centre, as part of the charity’s 40th anniversary celebrations.

He gave a presentation about his honey bee rescue service BeeGone, and explained that the business piqued Her Majesty’s interest.

Peter, 28, said: “It was exciting and a very fun experience because she showed a lot of interest in the honey bees.

“I explained about the bees, and she was asking questions. She is such a lovely lady.

“Prince Charles was there as well - I have met him before so it was good to catch up with him again!”

He also joked about his brave decision to bring 30,000 bees into the same room as the Queen, who turns 90 next month.

During a difficult childhood, he left school before turning 13 and with no qualifications.

But with support from the Prince’s Trust, Peter set up the Ewhurst-based business in 2009.

At the celebration at the trust’s headquarters in London on Tuesday March 8, Peter showed the Royals a honeycomb display case containing 30,000 bees.

He said: “It was a little bit nerve wracking I suppose, you have to get it out of your mind that it’s the Queen.”

He added: “The Prince’s Trust stepped forward to help me make it all happen. Without them I wouldn’t be where I am today.”

The Royal pair visited the centre to meet young people whose lives have been changed by the youth charity, which has supported 825,000 disadvantaged young people to move into education or work.

Martina Milburn, chief executive at The Prince’s Trust, said: “For 40 years The Prince’s Trust has been working to support young people because we believe that everyone deserves a chance.

“The Prince of Wales has worked tirelessly during that time to make a real difference to young people. It was a privilege to show Her Majesty some of this work.”

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