The Queen will be spending Christmas at Windsor Castle and will not be travelling to Sandringham, as is traditional.

Buckingham Palace has confirmed the decision, which Sky News understands is a personal one and taken after careful consideration.

Family members will be visiting Windsor over the festive period and sensible precautions will be taken.

The Queen and her family normally walk from the Sandringham estate in Norfolk to a local church on Christmas morning.

This Christmas is the Queen’s first since the death of the Duke of Edinburgh.

Her Majesty and Prince Philip spent Christmas Day together at Windsor last year without the rest of the family.

It emerged last week that the Queen had decided to cancel a traditional pre-Christmas lunch with other members of the Royal Family amid fears over spiking coronavirus cases and the arrival of the Omicron variant.

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The 95-year-old monarch hosts the event each year for her extended family and plans were reportedly fully in place at Windsor.

The Queen generally invites her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren to join her at Buckingham Palace before she departs for her annual Christmas stay at Sandringham.

The palace is undergoing major renovation works at present.

Last year’s gathering was also scrapped because of the COVID-19 crisis.

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