How is the Royal Family’s money spent?
Where does all that money actually go?
Previously I’ve explored how much the Royal Family earn the UK economy and looked into where their money comes from. For this article, I want to examine how the Royal Family spends their money.
By looking at the Royal Household’s accounts, we can form a picture of where their money goes.
From property and utilities to official travel, let us dive into the Royal accounts.
Property and Utilities
One of the main expenses held by the Royals revolves around the property.
Maintaining a property is a key expense. Part of the Sovereign Grant is spent on the upkeep of occupied royal palaces (BBC). These include Buckingham Palace, Kensington Palace, St James Palace, Windsor Castle and the Royal Mews and Royal Paddocks at Hampton Court (BBC).
According to the BBC, in 2021 £34.4 million of Sovereign Grant money was spent on the refurbishment of Buckingham Palace.
The Royal Household financial reports show that £3.2 million was spent on utilities in the 2020–21 financial year.
Paying Staff
Staff wages are paid for through the Sovereign Grant (BBC). A quick look on LinkedIn shows that at the time of writing 471 employees are listed under the Royal Household’s page. According to the Royal Household’s financial report, £24.1 million was spent in payroll costs in the 2020–21 financial year.
How much staff get paid is a hot topic of conversation after Insider discovered many of the wages were not far off the living wage.
Royal Travel
Official Royal travel is also paid for using the Sovereign Grant (BBC).
In the financial year of 2019–2020, official Royal travel totalled £5.3 million (Huffington Post). The most expensive trip during this financial period was the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s African tour, costing almost £246,000 reports the Huffington Post.
Other Expenses
The Royal Household financial statements of 2020–21 detail other expenses such as Housekeeping and Hospitality (£0.9 million), Information Technology and Telecoms (£3.7 million), Depreciation (£3.3 million) and ‘Other’ (£5.7 million). Other covers aspects such as equipment purchase/hire, legal advice and professional services, Covid-19 expenses (working from home costs etc.) and stationery (Royal Household).
Fashion
Clothing is not directly referred to in the Royal accounts, nor does an official figure seem to be known. Reports vary, and the budget appears to change each year.
Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge’s wardrobe has had estimates calculated on its value. For the first half of 2012, the Duchess of Cambridge allegedly spent $54,000 on clothes (Forbes). The Daily Mail estimated that the Duchess of Cambridge spent £57,000 in the first quarter of 2017.
Whilst this may seem like a lot of money, the Duchess has been known for repeating clothing pieces several times, thus attempting to keep costs lower. And if you consider how many events and appearances they make, especially on Royal tours, these figures make more sense. Plus, the money spent here is not from the Sovereign Grant.
A quick look at the Royal accounts shows just how expensive it is to live like Royalty. Upkeep on the Royal Palaces, refurbishment of Buckingham Palace, staff wages, official travel and other, smaller expenses all add up to tens of millions of pounds.
Of course, the true cost of the Royal Family’s lives is even higher when you include figures for things like security, which is covered by the Metropolitan Police (BBC).
The reporting of the Royal Accounts assists the Royal Family’s honesty and transparency about money, helping to break down assumptions and misconceptions.
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