A PENSIONER who helped design and build a royal garden is going back after 20 years to see her work in full bloom.

Keen gardener, pensioner Sheila Williams now living in Langton Herring planted a herb garden in Highgrove House in Gloucestershire as a wedding gift to Prince Charles and Lady Diana in 1984.

The house has been the private residence of the Prince of Wales since 1980.

Visits to the world- renowned gardens are restricted as they are closed off to the public for security reasons when members of the royal family are in residence.

Mrs Williams said: "I have always wanted to see the results of what I did but there is a long waiting list and people have to wait for several years before getting in.

"I was the controller of the Surrey Women's Institute market in the 80s and we decided to offer to design and build a small herb garden.

"I managed to get plants from all over the country and was given help with some of the work by Lady Ann Winterbottom."

Mrs Williams believes that she was given permission to visit this year because of her involvement with the garden.

She added: "I got a really quick reply from Highgrove House. They said if I could agree to a time and date right there then I could come with a group of 25."

Mrs Williams is now a member of the Portesham and Broadway women's institutes.

She allocated most of the places for the Highgrove visit to institute members, but due to a huge amount of interest more members wanted to attend and so names were drawn out of a hat.

The green-fingered group will visit the gardens on June 16.

Still a keen gardener, Mrs Williams occasionally opens her garden at Fleetway Cottage to the public during the year.