Duke of Westminster and fiancée Olivia Henson visit Chester causes

They visited the Cathedral Music Trust and Chester Cathedral's music team, while the couple were also entertained by a new Small Sounds programme for families with children aged 0-5.

The Duke of Westminster and Olivia Henson with The Revd Canon Rosie Woodall Vice Dean and Philip Rush Master of the Choristers visiting the Small Sounds Project.SW0752024.

It was part of a larger visit to the city on Tuesday, May 7 that saw 33-year-old Hugh Grosvenor and Miss Henson see the work of the Cheshire Dance initiative at Storyhouse, and meeting participants in Storyhouse's Young Leaders programme at the nearby Studio by Storyhouse.

All three community causes are backed by the Westminster Foundation, of which the Duke chairs and has helped reshape over the past few years, with a renewed focus on families.

The Duke of Westminster, Olivia Henson, Tom Stych, Joe Lewis, Suzie Henderson, Kate Mylchreest.

The duke and Miss Henson – who are to be married at Chester Cathedral on Friday, June 7 – firstly visited Cheshire Dance at the Garret Theatre, where they were treated to a demonstration by primary school children in the Brazilian art form of capoeira, which deftly mixes martial arts with acrobatics and dance.

Led by teacher Rafael Braga, youngsters performed cartwheels, bridge poses and kicks in a spectacular display.

Emma Thomas, Cheshire Dance development artist, is no stranger to seeing the Duke, having been at primary school with him, and had a quick catch-up with him during the visit about the birthday parties they went to as children.

His Grace The Duke of Westminster accompanied by Olivia Henson with Emma Thomas and Adam Holloway of Cheshire Dance.

About the group, Miss Thomas explained the children had recently been working on martial arts belts and performing together, adding: "Our programme in general brings together young people from all walks of life, with a particular focus on supporting mental health and well-being, using dance as a catalyst to really enrich their lives."

Adam Holloway, Cheshire Dance director, explained the long-term backing of the Westminster Foundation was vital for its work.

Young Cheshire Dance performers.

He said: "To come across an organisation who enables us to just do what we do, which is reach out into the community and meet the demand where it is in the community, whether that's in Blacon, or Lache, or Ellesmere Port, it just allows us to go out and meet that demand. So that's transformative for us."

Cheshire Dance member Ollie, 11, added: "We've been learning different capoeira moves and we performed at a festival in Northwich. It's fun because you get to move a lot, get to be with your friends," adding Mr Braga is "very good" as he has "such a lot of experience. He's done so much and he's very skills in what he does. He's the best teacher you could ask for!"

Cheshire Dance performers, with dance Teacher Rafael Braga.

The duke and Miss Henson made the short trip to the new Studio by Storyhouse, where young leader Tom Stych guided them round the studio, seeing how people aged 16-25 with limited opportunities to connect with others are given chances to build skills, confidence and work experience, with Storyhouse chief executive Annabel Turpin saying one of the group had, through the sessions, since successfully started working for Storyhouse.

The VIP couple were also presented with a number of community initiatives which had helped young people in Lache, thanks to a robotics course as part of Construction Connections, and the Wise Connections group offering a range of fun and creative workshops including podcasting, outdoor walks, gaming tournaments and a space-themed escape room.

The Duke of Westminster meeting Tom Stych of Storyhouse Young Leaders.

Wise Connections founder Max said: "With Wise Connections, it's important that I provide something for the neurodivergent community and develop new interests, and also hopefully develop meaningful connections that will last long after this."

Another of the Lache-based groups is the 'Don't Tell Me to Calm Down' project, run by Alice Hutcheson, Jinny Maddox and Kera-Leigh Gilmartin.

The Duke of Westminster and Olivia Henson at Storyhouse Studio with Don't Tell Me to Calm Down organisers Kera-Leigh Gilmartin, Alice Hutcheson and Jinny Madox.

Kera-Leigh, who has also been part of the Young Leaders programme, said the group, set up with friend Jinny, was for "helping female rage."

She added: "We were able to create a rage room for women of Lache where you let out all your rage in our rage room and then we have the mosaic workshop at the end with calming after-thoughts so you won't leave all wound up."

Speaking about the big interest in the Lache groups, Kera-Leigh added: "It's genuinely mental. It doesn't feel real that we've had this big of an opportunity. It opened my connections with people, got me out of the house a lot more and it helped me build my confidence and it really helped with my schooling."

Fun times had with parents and toddlers at the Small Sounds project.

For the final Westminster Foundation visit, the Duke and Miss Henson made the trip across the road to Chester Cathedral, where Cathy Dew, director of programmes, led the Small Sounds parent-toddler session, a new programme offering free, weekly cathedral-based music groups.

It took place at the cathedral's Song School, a place officially opened by the previous Duke of Westminster Gerald Grosvenor, Hugh's father, in 2005 following its renovation.

Hugh Grosvenor, with Olivia Henson, view the plaque honouring the duke's father when he opened the cathedral's Song School in 2005.

Speaking about the importance of the Westminster Foundation, Hugh Grosvenor said: "Supporting children and young people in your home city is unbelievably important to me, because they are the future of this country.

"After my father died, we had the opportunity to refresh the Westminster Foundation. It all went into the Defence and National Rehabilitation Centre. Once that was done, which was quite a project to get over the line, I looked at the Westminster Foundation and thinking 'how can we make it relevant?', 'how can I make it mine' and 'what do I want to focus on?'

The Duke of Westminster and Olivia Henson with one of the families who enjoyed the Small Sounds session.

"One thing that I remember so clearly was we were doing these round-table events and everyone said that early years and supporting young people and young families is something that is not focused on enough, because it doesn't look good on the back of a glossy annual review.

"And I was saying, 'hold on, what do you mean by that?' And they said 'if you get it right, they don't become statistics', and I thought crikey, well, that is exactly what we should be focusing on then.

"Before, our grant giving was haphazard. My father saw a good idea and would like to back it.

The Duke of Westminster and Olivia Henson chatting to Cathy Dew.

"And I said, look, if we're going to support these charities, I'd really like to build a relationship with them and back them for the long term so we can get to know them and really start to understand what the impact that we're having actually is."

Miss Henson added, of the day's visit: "It's amazing. To meet the young people who it's impacting, it's just incredible. It really brings it to life and you can see, even when we were talking to them, they became so much more confident and having a sense of autonomy and the projects that they're doing are pretty inspirational."

For more information about the Westminster foundation and the causes it supports, visit https://westminsterfoundation.org.uk/

All pictures by Simon Warburton