Princess Beatrice praises her mother as she visits the school to read the award-winning book

Princess Beatrice praised her mother Sarah, Duchess of York, as she read an award-winning picture book to pupils at a south London primary school.

Beatrice, 35, said she “grew up with an incredible mother”, reflecting on the importance of storytelling for young people and their development during a visit to West Thornton Primary School in Croydon.

The King read from the picture book ‘When Dinosaurs Walked The Earth’, written by Sean Taylor and illustrated by Zehra Hicks, which topped the shortlist for the Book Oscar this year.

Beatrice, who is the award’s royal patron, said: “I grew up with an incredible mother as a children’s author, so the stories really created that sense of imagination.

“I really appreciate what stories can do, that special moment of quality, that moment at the end of the day, but also how important it is for reading in general for young people to make sure that we can do everything we can to make sure that these books they actually end up in the hands of those who need it most.”

Jonathan Owen, headteacher at West Thornton Primary School, said: “There is so much to learn from picture books and we ensure our children are exposed to a wide range of stories from the start of their school journey.

“One of our school’s priorities is to ensure that competent reading skills and a love of reading underpin all learning in our curriculum.

“We carefully select texts that both faithfully represent our diverse community and serve to broaden children’s imaginations.

“The diversity of subjects covered in children’s books is greater than ever, and this year’s nominees for the Academy Award for Book Awards were no exception.

“We loved reading them together and it was an absolute delight to have HRH Princess Beatrice visit and read this year’s winning book – it’s sure to be a storytelling moment to remember.”

The visit also celebrated the recent launch of Oscar’s Book Club, where prize supporter Amazon donated this year’s selected books to schools and nurseries across the country, with a team of volunteers supporting on-site with sessions group reading.

The Oscar’s Book Prize is an annual award for the best picture book for young children, founded by the parents of Oscar Ashton, who died in 2012 of an undiagnosed heart condition aged three and a half.