Queen’s Baton Relay route will pass through Nottingham ahead of Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games
The route of the Queen's Baton Relay ahead of this summer's Commonwealth Games has been unveiled.
Travelling via land, air and sea, more than 180 communities in England will experience the Queen’s Baton on a route spanning 2,500 miles from as far south as Cornwall to as far north as Northumberland.
The baton will arrive in the East Midlands on Sunday, July 10, passing through Northampton, Corby, Rutland, Leicester, Nottingham and Lincoln.
The following day, on Monday, July 11, it will travel through Skegness, Boston, Grantham, Loughborough, Derby, Bakewell, Matlock and Buxton.
Highlights across the two days will see the baton delve down the Nottingham Castle caves, visit Loughborough University and will reach new heights on the high ropes in Skegness.
Birmingham 2022 is hosting the 16th official Queen’s Baton Relay – a journey which brings together and celebrates communities across the Commonwealth, during the build up to the games which span 11 days.
The Queen’s Baton Relay travelling the length and breadth of England will take 29 days, before culminating at the opening ceremony for Birmingham 2022 on July 28.
The event kicks off on Thursday, June 2, with the baton spending four days in London to coincide with the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee Weekend, celebrating the Queen’s 70th year as monarch and head of the Commonwealth.
The Baton will then resume the international journey, visiting the Falkland Islands, Jersey, Guernsey, and the Isle of Man, before touring home nations of Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales.
It returns to England on Monday, July 4, to commence a 25-day tour of the regions.
Members of the public are encouraged to get involved with the celebrations and embrace the arrival of the baton, with the Birmingham 2022 website providing information on the events and where to line the route.
Thousands of batonbearers, each with inspiring backgrounds and stories, will have the honour of carrying the baton during the journey through England, including those nominated in recognition of their contributions to their local community, whether that be in sport, education, the arts, culture or charity. Between 40 and 130 batonbearers will carry the baton each day, and the relay will reach hundreds of villages, towns and cities during its tour of the country.
Ian Reid, chief executive of Birmingham 2022 said: “Whilst the baton has been travelling across the Commonwealth, we have worked closely with local authorities in England to devise a route that engages with hundreds of communities, passing sport venues, historic sites, local schools and areas of outstanding natural beauty. Yet the Queen’s Baton Relay is far more than just a journey.
"It symbolises connecting people from every corner of the Commonwealth, celebrates Batonbearers who take on challenges, and marks the countdown to the biggest sporting event in West Midlands history. And by the time the Baton returns to England for the final leg, 71 nations and territories will have already experienced the magic that comes with it.
“We hope that communities across the country join the excitement, attend events near them, line the streets to cheer on our incredible Batonbearers and celebrate the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games.”
The full route is as follows:
London
Thursday, June 2, to Monday, June 6 — London
South West
Monday, July 4 — St Austell, Plymouth, Exeter, Portland and Weymouth, Poole, and Bournemouth
Tuesday, July 5 — Devizes, Bath, Bristol, Easter Compton, Hereford, Gloucester, and Cheltenham
South East
Wednesday, July 6 — Stoke Mandeville, Maidenhead, Eton & Windsor, Aldershot, Winchester, Hambledon, Southampton, and Portsmouth
Thursday, July 7 — Guildford, Tonbridge, Canterbury, Folkestone, Deal, and Dover
East of England
Friday, July 8 — Gravesend, Tilbury, Basildon, Southend-on-Sea, Maldon, Waltham Cross, Luton and Hemel Hempstead
Saturday, July 9 — King's Lynn, Great Yarmouth, Bury St Edmunds, Hinxton, and Cambridge
East Midlands
Sunday, July 10 — Northampton, Corby, Rutland, Leicester, Nottingham, Lincoln
Monday, July 11 — Skegness, Boston, Grantham, Loughborough, Derby, Bakewell, Matlock, and Buxton
Yorkshire and The Humber
Tuesday, July 12 — Sheffield, Rotherham, Huddersfield, Bradford, and Leeds
Wednesday, July 13 — Hull, Beverley, Market Weighton, York, Malton, Scarborough, Robin Hood’s Bay, and Whitby
North East
Thursday, July 14 — Saltburn-by-the-Sea, Redcar, Middlesbrough, Stockton-on-Tees, Darlington, Durham, Seaham, and Sunderland
Friday, July 15 — South Shields, Whitley Bay, Blyth, Alnwick, Gateshead, and Newcastle-upon-Tyne
North West
Saturday, July 16 — Carlisle, Lake District, Preston, Blackburn, Darwen, and Bolton
Sunday, July 17 — Salford, Manchester, Stockport, Northwich, Wigan, and Knowsley
West Midlands
Monday, July 18 — Liverpool, Keele, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Kidsgrove, Stoke-on-Trent, and Shrewsbury
Tuesday, July 19 — Ironbridge, Telford, Newport, Lilleshall, Stafford, Stone, Rudyard, and Leek
Wednesday, July 20 – Uttoxeter, Burton upon Trent, Lichfield, Burntwood, Chasewater, and Tamworth
Thursday, July 21 — Bodymoor Heath, Atherstone, Market Bosworth, Nuneaton, Bedworth, Rugby, and Coventry
Friday, July 22 — Kenilworth, Whitnash, Warwick, Gaydon, Stratford-upon-Avon, Broadway, Pershore, Upton-upon-Severn, Malvern, and Worcester
Saturday, July 23 — Redditch, Bromsgrove, Kidderminster, Bridgnorth, Codsall, Rugeley, Hednesford, Cannock, and Walsall
Sunday, July 24 — Wolverhampton, Halesowen, Stourbridge, Dudley, Brierley Hill
Monday, July 25 — Oldbury, Wednesbury, Tipton, Cradley Heath, Rowley Regis, Blackheath, Bearwood, Smethwick, and West Bromwich
Tuesday, July 26 — Castle Bromwich, Fordbridge, Chelmsley Wood, Marston Green, Hampton in Arden, Meriden, Berkswell, Balsall Common, Knowle, Dorridge, Cheswick Green, Hockley Heath, Dickens Heath, Shirley, and Solihull
Wednesday, July 27, to Thursday, July 28 — Birmingham
