His Majesty The King retains Patronage of the Royal College of Art on the first anniversary of Their Majesties’ Coronation

The RCA has been intrinsically linked to the Royal Household throughout the College's 187-year history, with The late Duke of Edinburgh having given his service as the Royal Visitor for 50 years, from 1967 when the Royal Charter was granted by The late Queen Elizabeth II.

The role of Royal Visitor to the RCA was taken on by The former Prince of Wales – now His Majesty The King – in 2018. The announcement of HM The King’s retained Patronage of the RCA marks the first anniversary of Their Majesties’ Coronation. As part of the official Coronation Concert in May 2023, the Royal College of Art along with The Royal Ballet, The Royal Opera, the Royal Shakespeare Company, and the Royal College of Music came together for the first time ever to create a spectacular one-off performance, with a striking visual backdrop of specially-designed artworks contributed by students from the Royal College of Art.

His Majesty King Charles III, in his former role as HRH The Prince of Wales, and the RCA’s Chancellor, Sir Jony Ive, also launched the Sustainable Markets Initiative’s Terra Carta Design Lab in 2021, which invited some of the world’s most talented design students to create high-impact, low-cost solutions to urgent environmental challenges. The four RCA winners of that inaugural Terra Carta Design Lab - Aerseeds, Amphico, The Tyre Collective and ZELP - have gone on to make significant impacts.

Speaking about the news, Professor Christoph Lindner, President & Vice-Chancellor of the Royal College of Art, said: ‘I am thrilled that the RCA is to remain one of the organisations under the Royal Patronage of His Majesty King Charles III. The importance of The Royal Family’s support for the College is not to be underestimated; Royal Patronage has enabled the achievements and contributions of the RCA’s students, alumni and staff to be recognised on a global scale. It is also wonderful to have the support of His Majesty The King as his values so closely align to the Royal College of Art, particularly in his championing of the arts and of environmental issues.’

Members of the Royal Family are patrons to around 3,000 charities across the United Kingdom, the Commonwealth, and the wider world.