Meghan tour hits Pacific
School blow for Evie after chat with royals
DETAILS of the Duchess of Sussex’s first overseas royal tour have been revealed.
Meghan and Harry will visit Australia, New Zealand, Fiji and Tonga from October 16 to 30.
They are expected to be at the Invictus Games, the Prince’s event for injured service personnel. It opens in Sydney on October 20.
Kensington Palace said the Pacific tour would “focus on youth leadership, environmental and conservation efforts”.
A DISABLED award winner who met Prince Harry and Meghan last week was barred from returning to school to sit her A-levels – for having too much time off sick.
Evie Toombes, 16, won the Inspirational Young Person award for her brave battle against two incurable conditions.
Last week she chatted with the Duke and Duchess of Sussex before receiving her award at a WellChild charity do.
But she was “completely crushed” by a decision to stop her going to sixth-form college because of her attendance record and GCSE results, both of which were heavily affected by weeks in hospital.
The decision was overturned last night but keen horse rider Evie said: “The contrast between my last two weeks is crazy. WellChild was wonderful, it gave me a real lift and everyone was so lovely.
“Harry and Meghan were really interested in my educational work in primary schools. But then I was told I wouldn’t be able to study for my A-levels.”
Evie, of Skegness, Lincs, was born with spina bifida and recently diagnosed with gastroparesis, a paralysed stomach.
She has been in and out of hospital, causing her attendance at Skegness Grammar to drop to 50%. She did pass three GCSEs by studying online modules and sitting some exams in hospital.
But her dreams of sixth-form English and Psychology were dashed when she fell short of admissions criteria. Evie, who tweeted about “blogging with the ponies” after hearing the original decision, said: “The school advised me to do a vocational course like hairdressing. It felt like I was being forced out of the system.”
Last Tuesday Evie chatted for several minutes with Meghan and Prince Harry, a patron of WellChild. She won her award for her work mentoring disabled children and giving talks to primary pupils.
Skegness Grammar School made a U-turn after being contacted by the Mirror. A spokesman said she would now be offered an A-level place and the school was making “adjustments for her needs”.
He added: “We apologise unreservedly for any distress to Evie and her parents.”
However Evie’s mum Caroline, 47, said the school had yet to be in touch with the family, adding: “That’s news to me.”