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Countess of Wessex cancels visits to Rochester Cathedral and Medway Maritime Hospital but will still go to school near Ashford

00:01, 01 November 2016

The Countess of Wessex was due to officially open a bereavement suite at a Kent hospital today for families who have lost a baby.

But her visit to Medway Maritime Hospital has been cancelled because the Countess' travel plans have been disrupted by fog.

The Countess was also due to officially launch a new exhibition space at Rochester Cathedral but this too has been called off.

Sophie Countess of Wessex
Sophie Countess of Wessex

Her Royal Highness was due to unveil the £5.7 million Hidden Treasures, Fresh Expressions Project, which has seen the crypt and library refurbished.

The crypt has become an exhibition space and a permanent home for the Textus Roffensis, a medieval book pre-dating the Magna Carta which was written at the cathedral by a single scribe in 1120.

The opening will still go ahead, with The Lord Lieutenant of Kent Viscount De L’Isle officiating.

The suite is a place to say goodbye
The suite is a place to say goodbye

The opening of the bereavement suite will also still go ahead, with a plaque being unveiled by The Lord Lieutenant and Abigail's patron Lady Astor of Hever.

The suite, called Abigail’s Place, has been funded by Abigail’s Footsteps, a charity set up by Rochester couple David and Jo Ward, in memory of their daughter Abigail.

Work started earlier this year, on what would have been Abigail’s seventh birthday.

The Countess will still visit Benenden School, an independent boarding school for girls, located between Cranbrook and Tenterden.

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