London Luton Airport (LLA) was delighted to host Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal today (Friday 17th October) as she visited Tennyson Road Primary School and Tokko Youth Hub, two Luton-based beneficiaries of the airport’s work in the local community.

The Princess Royal was welcomed to Tennyson Road Primary School by HM The Lord-Lieutenant of Bedfordshire and children and staff of the school. During the visit to Tennyson Road, Her Royal Highness unveiled a commemorative plaque to formally open the school’s blossoming new outdoor learning space, created thanks to a grant from LLA’s Greener Future Fund*. Members of the airport’s community team and Her Royal Highness were invited to plant some bulbs and met with the school’s gardening club as they took part in log painting, making bird feeders and planting.

Head of Tennyson Road Primary School, Carla Gotch, commented: “This was a momentous day for the children and staff of our school. We were all so proud to host Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal and to have this opportunity to showcase the beautiful outdoor space that our children can now enjoy thanks to the support of London Luton Airport. Today’s visit provided a wonderful opportunity to celebrate our relationship with the airport and the significant educational and social benefits that this delivers for our children. It is a day that none of us will ever forget.”

The Princess Royal then travelled into central Luton to visit LLA’s local charity partner Tokko Youth Hub**, a dynamic charity dedicated to supporting children and young people across Luton. The visit included a tour of the facility’s gaming, activity and wellbeing spaces and provided an insight into the impact of the charity’s partnership with the airport. 

Tokko Chief Executive, Aimee Djengiz, commented: “For everyone associated with Tokko, it truly was an honour to host Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal today. A royal visit rounds off an amazing year for Tokko, providing a once in a lifetime opportunity to highlight the ways in which the airport’s fundraising activities are helping us to directly support young people from disadvantaged backgrounds by developing their employability skills and helping to overcome the barriers they typically face. It was an incredible platform to showcase the important work that our charity is doing for young people in Luton.”   

Alberto Martin, Chief Executive Officer at London Luton Airport, commented: “Everyone associated with London Luton Airport is honoured to have hosted today’s visit from Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal. It was wonderful to highlight the breadth of our work in the local community and, more specifically, the way we are delivering enduring social benefit for two wonderful organisations that are so close to LLA’s heart. Our partnerships with Tennyson Road Primary School and Tokko Youth Hub are perfect examples of the airport’s commitment to deliver positive outcomes for young people.”

HM The Lord-Lieutenant of Bedfordshire said: “It was a privilege to welcome Her Royal Highness The Princess Royal to Luton. The visit highlighted the powerful impact of partnership working, with London Luton Airport supporting both educational and youth initiatives. The enthusiasm and warmth of the welcome at Tennyson Road Primary School, and the inspiration shared at Tokko Youth Hub, were a testament to the dedication of all involved. It was wonderful to see how these projects are enriching the lives of young people and making a difference in our county.”

Paul Kehoe CBE, Chair of Luton Rising, the Luton Council company that owns the airport and associated assets for community benefit, said: “It was an honour to be able to highlight the positive social impact of London Luton Airport which is a result of the close partnership between owner and operator. At Luton Rising we are proud to drive this through our unique investment exceeding £500m in community and frontline services over more than 25 years to support Luton Council’s 2040 vision of a healthy, fair and sustainable town where everyone can thrive.”

LLA’s charity partnerships and grant funding initiatives form part of LLA’s broader approach to delivering benefit in its local community. Other examples include: 
•    A supply chain spend of £110 million with more than 300 businesses within a 25-mile radius of the airport in 2024, amounting to 60% of all suppliers
•    Over 19,000 beneficiaries receiving vital funding collectively from the LLA Community Trust Fund and Greener Future Fund in 2024, with more than £180,000 being awarded to schools, community groups and organisations 

•    The airport’s Classroom to Careers programme, aimed at supporting local schools and community groups, providing tailored learning opportunities including essential skills and environmental workshops that saw LLA volunteers engaging with over 300 students from 11 local schools in 2024.

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Notes for Editors
* The Greener Future Fund, partially funded by the airport’s Community Trust Fund, was launched in 2023 and invites applicants based and working within a five-mile radius of the airport to apply for a grant of up to £10,000, supporting initiatives that look to contribute to the protection of the local environment and tackle carbon reduction. 

**Tokko Youth Hub is committed to empowering young people aged 13-19 years (or up to 24 years for those with special educations needs and disabilities (SEND) or young parents) to achieve their full potential, the charity provides a blend of open-access, universal and targeted support aimed at fostering positive outcomes.

About London Luton Airport
London Luton Airport (LLA) is one of the UK’s busiest airports, carrying over 16.7 million passengers in 2024. The airport is operated by a consortium, of which the majority shareholder is AENA, the world’s largest airport operator, and InfraBridge, a leading infrastructure investment manager. Airlines include Jet2, easyJet, Wizz Air, Ryanair, Tui, FlyOne, Sun Express and El Al.

The airport is owned for community benefit by Luton Rising, a company wholly-owned by Luton Council, which has invested more than £500m in front-line, voluntary and charitable services since 1998.

The Luton Airport Express is a new dedicated train service that allows passengers to travel from central London to the LLA terminal in around 30 minutes. The Luton Airport Express runs from St Pancras International to Luton Airport Parkway station and connects seamlessly with the Luton DART, an electrically powered people mover that connects to the airport terminal in less than four minutes.

In 2024, LLA was named European Airport of the Year (10-25 million passengers) by ACI EUROPE, and in 2025 LLA received the highest possible rating of 'Very Good' in the annual Airport Accessibility report published by the CAA, assessing assisted travel service performance.

Last year, LLA also became the only third major UK airport to achieve Level 4 of the globally recognised Airport Carbon Accreditation scheme, demonstrating that it is ‘transforming its operations to achieve carbon reductions in line with global climate goals’. With a maximum score of 100 and a five-star rating, LLA has been ranked as a sector leader for three consecutive years in the Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB) benchmark of sustainability governance management and performance of major infrastructure assets worldwide.

LLA continues to be a major employer and a key economic driver in Bedfordshire — supporting 28,000 jobs and contributing £830 million per year to the local economy. In 2024, LLA spent 60% of its supply chain costs with more than 300 businesses within a 25-mile radius of the airport, totalling £110 million.

To learn about the progress London Luton Airport is making across its sustainability programme please click here.

Further information on London Luton Airport can be found here: https://www.london-luton.co.uk/

London Luton Airport Press Office
T: 01582 395333
E: pressoffice@ltn.aero

URL: https://mediahub.london-luton.co.uk/news/17102025/london-luton-airport-hosts-hrh-the-princess-royal