THE Queen was presented with a special accreditation pass for Glasgow 2014 as she met staff and volunteers preparing for the Commonwealth Games.

The monarch was accompanied by the Duke of Edinburgh for a behind-the-scenes look at venues in the city. They received a tour of Kelvin Hall, which is home to the uniform and accreditation centre for the Games, where they spoke with volunteers and staff.

The Queen, wearing a Karl Ludwig pale buttercup yellow crepe coat, floral silk dress and Angela Kelly hat, was shown around by Commonwealth Games staff, including head of accreditation Adrian Wood and operations manager Ed Saayeng.

He said: "The visit was a brilliant experience. She was much more laid back than I expected and very open and interested in what we are doing."

The Queen, who last visited Kelvin Hall in 1951 to open an exhibition of industrial power, met some of the 50,000 volunteers who are expected to help out at the Games when they begin later this month.

Mr Saayeng, 31, said: "For the Queen to take the time to come here and be presented with her accreditation, and I'm not sure that's been done before, we really appreciate that."

The royal couple went on to visit the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome, named in honour of the UK's most successful gold medal-winning Olympian and Scottish Commonwealth Games champion. They watched the Scottish cycling team using the 250-metre track designed by leading track designer Ralph Schuermann.

Later the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh travelled to Dumfries House, near Cumnock in East Ayrshire, where they were met by the Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall, known in Scotland as the Duke and Duchess of Rothesay.

During the visit, the monarch officially opened The Queen Elizabeth Walled Garden by unveiling an engraved sundial before a crowd of more than 1,300 donors, volunteers, staff and members of the local community.

The opening of the garden comes almost seven years to the day since Charles first purchased the house in June 2007 with funding from a consortium of charitable foundations. In his speech, he said it was "always my intention" to open the house and its estate for the public to enjoy.