King Charles attends the Sunday service at Sandringham

The King appeared in high spirits as he paused to chat to members of the public as he walked to church on the Sandringham estate in Norfolk on Sunday.

Several dozen well-wishers turned out to see Charles, 75, as he strolled to the service at St Mary Magdalene Church.

Members of the public were invited into the paddock near the church – as they are on Christmas Day – on the warm July day.

The King – who is continuing to receive treatment following a cancer diagnosis – wore a grey suit, purple tie and brown shoes.

The sun shone as he made the short journey, of a few minutes on foot, from Sandringham House to the church.

Charles, who was not joined by Queen Camilla, briefly spoke with members of the public before being greeted by the Rev Canon Dr Paul Williams.

The outing comes after Buckingham Palace said it wants to ‘stay curious’ and ‘help shape a better world’ as part of King Charles‘ reign in a set of newly published ‘royal values’.

The move has been made public in the Royal Household’s annual report as His Majesty continues his push for a slimmed-down monarchy and put his stamp on the institution.

In the document it states that the first couple of years of Charles’ reign have allowed them to take stock and ‘define a new expression of purpose underpinned by a refreshed set of values’.

It states that these are: ‘Act with Care’; ‘Make an Impact’; ‘Succeed Together’; ‘Stay Curious’; and ‘Lead by Example’. 

The report adds that the duty of the Royal Household is to ‘support the sovereign in serving the UK and Commonwealth to help shape a better world’.

In its latest report the Royal Household has pledged to have a ‘strong emphasis on value for money’, The Telegraph reports.

However, at the same time it has removed a section which promised ‘accountability’ in how it uses public funds and resources. 

It has also deleted a line which said ‘different generations of the Royal Family’ would take part in events to make the monarchy ‘relevant and accessible to people at every stage of life’.

This is in keeping with the ethos Charles has tried to instil since he ascended to the throne, with His Majesty keen to give Britain a slimmed-down monarchy.

Since then the number of working royals has reduced, with fewer appearing at state events.

This was evident at Trooping the Colour in June, when Charles was joined on the balcony of Buckingham Palace by a small set of key working royals and close family members.

While the three Wales children were present, there was no room for his nieces Princess Beatrice, Princess Eugenie and Zara Tindall, or his nephew Peter Phillips. The Sussexes and his brother Prince Andrew were also nowhere to be seen.

It comes after it was revealed that the cost of Royal Family engagements over the last year increased to £4.2million  despite there being 400 fewer visits and less foreign travel.

This was a rise of £300,000 on the year before, something a Royal source put down to inflationary pressures as the cost-of-living crisis saw the price of goods and services increase. 

The cost of the French State Visit should also have fallen in the previous financial year but was deferred due to the political situation across the Channel, they added.

His Majesty undertook 464 official engagements, down from 565 last year, with the Queen performing 201 of which 103 were joint.

They also made fewer foreign trips, perhaps reflecting a need to stay closer to home due to illness.

There are 27 separate journeys by Royal Family members listed in the official report for 2023/24 where travel costs were at least £17,000, only eight of which involved the King.

This includes the most expensive trip in the 12 months to March 2024, the five-day state visit by the King and Queen to Kenya in October and November 2023, which had travel costs totalling £166,557.

The King was also involved in the second and third most expensive trips on the list: a three-day state visit to France with the Queen in September 2023 (£117,942) and a solo two-day journey on the royal train in June 2023 to Pickering in North Yorkshire, to mark the centenary of the Flying Scotsman (£52,013).

The annual Sovereign Grant report detailing how the monarchy is funded by taxpayers reveals that the Coronation cost the Palace £800,000.

On Friday it was revealed that His Majesty is set to receive a major boost to his income as a result of deals between Great British Energy and the Crown Estate. 

The King’s property group is already making bumper profits from the fast-growing demand for offshore wind. The Crown Estate owns the seabed around the UK and firms operating offshore wind farms have to pay to lease their sites.

Last week, the business revealed its profits more than doubled in the 12 months to March, rising to £1.1 billion. Most of the £658 million increase came from additional fees paid by developers who won the rights to build six offshore wind farms in the North Sea and off the coast of Cumbria, Lancashire and North Wales.

A new round of leasing next year is expected to sign off plans for the development of a floating offshore wind industry in the Bristol Channel.

Sir Keir Starmer said a tie-up between the Government’s new GB Energy firm and the Crown Estate could see leases issued for a further 30 gigawatts of offshore wind by 2030 – double the amount currently installed.

The move could have a significant impact on the royal finances, as each new site would mean additional leasing fees for the Crown Estate.

Under the terms of the Sovereign Grant, the King receives 12 per cent of the profits of the Crown Estate to help cover the costs of the Royal Family.

A sharp rise in profits could translate into a large increase in the Sovereign Grant.