Kate Middleton is “excited” following a briefing on a new report by her Business Taskforce on early childhood. Produced by Deloitte on behalf of the Taskforce, the report emphasizes prioritizing early childhood for a happier, healthier society.
It outlines how a greater focus on early childhood could lead to a more productive workforce today and transform the health and well-being of the UK economy and society for generations to come.
Kate Middleton, who is currently recovering from cancer treatment, has been kept fully informed about the task force’s work and has reviewed the report.
Christian Guy, Executive Director of The Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood, said: “I know, having briefed The Princess on this, that she is enormously grateful to the members of the Taskforce who have made such fantastic progress on this work over the past year.
“She feels passionately about the transformational impact of getting this right together, both for the current generation and for many more to come. I know that she is keen to encourage all businesses, no matter what their size or purpose, to join us on this journey and is looking forward to seeing momentum grow in the coming months.”
The report outlines how investing in early childhood could generate at least £45.5 billion in value added for the national economy each year. It focuses on five key areas where businesses of all sizes can make a significant impact for children under five, the adults around them, the economy, and broader society.
Highlighting the areas of her Business Taskforce, which include:
- Building a culture that prioritizes early childhood within businesses, communities, and wider society.
- Assisting families facing the greatest challenges to access the basic support and essentials they need.
- Providing parents and carers with greater support and flexibility in their work.
- Prioritizing and nurturing social and emotional skills in young children and the adults in their lives.
- Increasing access to affordable childhood education and care.
Christian added of Kate: “She’s excited by it. Shaping Us was about awareness but also for her, what’s so important is action, so to have eight of the most significant businesses in Britain come forward and make the case to their fellow business leaders is vital. It’s exciting for her and it’s a priority going forward for our Centre’s work. And when she launched it, she really challenged businesses to go beyond the usual thinking.”
In March 2023, The Princess of Wales established the Taskforce to mobilize business action on early childhood.
Since its inception, Taskforce members Aviva, The Co-operative Group, Deloitte, Iceland Foods, IKEA UK and Ireland, The LEGO Group, NatWest Group, and Unilever UK have collaborated to assess the scale of the opportunity and the role that business can play.
Writing in FT Weekend, the mother-of-three emphasized that investing in early childhood is “a down payment for our collective future.”
This initiative followed the launch of the Princess’s Shaping Us project in January 2023, described as her “life’s work” aimed at raising awareness of early childhood development.
A Kensington Palace spokesman stressed the launch did not signal Kate “returning to work” and said “…early childhood is a huge priority for the Princess of Wales, and she has been kept fully up to date throughout the process and the development of the task force’s work and she has seen the report…”
