The headquarters of the Secretary-General, as with the Secretariat generally, is Marlborough House, a former royal residence in London, which was placed at the disposal of the Secretariat by Queen Elizabeth II. However, as the building cannot house all of the Secretariat's staff in London, additional space is rented elsewhere in London. From this operational base, a large part of the Secretary-General's work involves travelling around the Commonwealth keeping in personal contact with those at the heart of the governments of member states.