Queen Camilla has unveiled the foundation stone for a new development at Westminster Abbey, describing the historic site as “very special”.

The event marked a key milestone in the £13 million King Charles III Sacristy project, which will allow new means of access to the Abbey for millions of visitors each year.

Located near the Abbey’s north transept, the development will enable visitors to enter via the Great West Door, the ceremonial entrance used for royal weddings, funerals and coronations.

The sacristy will house welcome, security and ticketing facilities, allowing the Abbey itself to be preserved as a sacred space, with chairs and other objects stored in the new building.

Camilla reflected on her previous visit, noting a new concrete floor covering.

“I just want to say how delighted I am to unveil this foundation stone,” she said. “There’s now a floor – the last time I came here there were quite a lot of skeletons.

“I just hope that in 2026, when it’s due to finish, God willing my husband and I will be back here again to open the King Charles III Sacristy.”

The ceremony was attended by project donors and members of the Abbey’s chapter, including Thomas van Straubenzee, godfather to Princess Charlotte, Paul Ramsbottom, and project ambassador and TV gardener Alan Titchmarsh.

Camilla and Titchmarsh joked that the skeletons she saw on her first visit to the site were “quite spooky”.

Titchmarsh said he looked forward to the Abbey’s use being expanded as a place of worship.

The new building is being constructed on the footprint of Henry III’s medieval Great Sacristy, originally built in the 1250s.

Speaking with the Dean of Westminster, the Very Rev Dr David Hoyle, the Queen said: “I love this place, it’s just very special.”

The project is expected to be completed in 2026.