The return of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge to public engagements!

The previous week has been a busy one for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, who conducted their first public engagements of the year.

On Wednesday, 19th January, the royal couple visited the Foundling Museum, of which Catherine has been patron since 2019, to shed light on causes close to their heart. The Foundling Museum tells the story of the Foundling Hospital, which was founded in 1739 and was the first children’s charity of the United Kingdom, functioning as a care home for children who were at risk of abandonment.

Upon their arrival, William and Catherine discussed with experts about the conditions under which foster care functions in the U.K. and the challenges that young people may face once they leave foster care, especially challenges regarding their mental health, addiction, finding employment and seeking a new place to live.

The royal couple were also interested in hearing about the possible ways that can give solutions to these challenges.

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The Duchess’s of Cambridge cornerstone of work is the focus on Early Years Intervention. Being a staunch supporter of the belief that most social problems (bad mental health, poverty, addiction, criminality, unemployment) begin from the early years of the children’s development, Catherine aims at creating initiatives that ensure that children will be given the best possible care in order to transform into happy adults.

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William and Catherine also spoke with people who have been helped by the care system, hearing about their life and experiences. The couple were interested in learning about the main activity that takes place in the museum, which is the use of the work of artists, musicians and writers in the development of learning programmes in support of the most vulnerable young members of the community. This comes in total agreement with Catherine’s belief that art has a positive effect on mental health.

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The next day, William and Catherine visited Lancashire in order to champion the mental health of healthcare workers, who have been facing enormous challenges since the beginning of the pandemic. The royal couple also heard about the ways that medical staff uses to cope with these challenges. In their capacity as joint patrons of the NHS Charities Together, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge met with doctors, nurses and other medical staff at Clitheroe Community Hospital. They also met an adorable cockapoo puppy named Alfie, who will be trained as a therapy dog that will support the hospital’s staff and patients. William and Catherine were excited to hold the puppy, who reminded of their own dog, a black cocker spaniel that they adopted after the death of their first dog, Lupo. Alfie’s support, according to the hospital’s staff and patients, has been of vital importance for their mental health.

The NHS Charities Together have also made donations to fund mental health services for the hospital staff across East Lancashire Hospitals Trust, in order to support their wellbeing.

However, this was not the only engagement of the day for the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. After their visit to the Clitheroe Community Hospital, they visited the Church on the Street, a charity founded by Pastor Fleming in 2019 that supports people who struggle with poverty and addiction in Burnley. The couple listened about the important role of the charity in the local community, as it provides help to to thousands of people every year.

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During the visit, the Duke of Cambridge had also a touching moment with a little boy who lost his mother last year. William eagerly supported the young child, by reassuring him that eventually ”it gets better” and encouraging him to keep talking about his mother, recalling his own experience with the tragic death of his mother, Princess Diana.

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Pastor Fleming, talking about William’s and Catherine’s visit to his charity, said that they

“give us credibility for our work and highlight what we are doing, and it also encourages the other organizations like the NHS who are trying to partner with us. It encourages that to be followed through.”
“They were so relaxed and easy to speak to and engaged on a personal level. It was just like talking to a friend”.

Next month, the Duke of Cambridge is going to carry out his first official solo visit to Dubai, as Kensington Palace announced, in order to visit EXPO 2020.

If you want to see Catherine’s event tomorrow and more, don’t forget to check the ”Cambridges’ Diary” section on the blog!