Kate Middleton ‘excited’ by new update as Kensington Palace issues statement

The Princess of Wales is said to be “delighted” by her business group’s new report which claims Britain could gain £45.5 billion in economic benefits if firms prioritize early childhood. Kate, who is undergoing chemotherapy after a cancer diagnosis, watched the work of the CEOs she convened last year to drive business action on the importance of the formative years of a child’s development.

The Royal Foundation Business Taskforce for Early Childhood has produced a report recommending a range of interventions from creating a culture inside and outside businesses that prioritize early childhood to supporting parents with greater resources and flexibility in the workplace. The eight members of the task force include the chief executives of Ikea, NatWest Group and Deloitte – and their report highlights how the nation could benefit by an estimated £45.5 billion.

The amount could be achieved by equipping young people with social and emotional skills, supporting parents who want to return to work and reducing the need to spend public funds on those who experienced difficult childhoods that could have been avoided through action preventive in early childhood. The report follows the launch of Kate’s long-running Shaping Us campaign in January last year, described as the princess’ “life’s work” and aimed at highlighting the crucial first five years of a child’s life.

Christian Guy, chief executive of the Royal Foundation’s Center for Early Childhood, told Kate about the new report she had read and said she was “thrilled” by the document.

He said: “Shaping Us was about awareness, but it’s also so important to take action. So to have eight of the UK’s leading businesses come forward, pitch their case to their fellow business leaders is vital – it’s exciting for her and for her. it is a priority for the activity of our center.”

Mr Guy added: “This is another crucial moment for Her Royal Highness’s early childhood work as its impact and the work of her Early Childhood Center continues as she recovers.”

A Kensington Palace spokesman stressed that the launch did not signal Kate’s “return to work” and said “… early childhood is a huge priority for the Princess of Wales and she has been kept fully informed throughout process and development work of the working group and she saw the report…”

The Princess has been working for several years to raise the profile of early childhood development and established the center in 2021 as part of the Prince and Princess of Wales Royal Foundation.

Emma Franklin, consulting director with Deloitte, which produced the taskforce’s report, said: “investing in social and emotional skills for under-fives”, known as “soft skills” and associated with resilience, problem-solving and empathy, “we could see a productivity gain of around £12.2bn over a generation.”

She said: “And then we also look at the opportunity to encourage parents and carers to get back into the workforce if they have access to more suitable childcare opportunities, and that number is around 17.2 billion.”

Ms Franklin, who worked on the report, added: “Finally, we’re looking at public spending now on mitigating adverse childhood experiences, so children who suffer from neglect and abuse and if we could reduce some of that , will occur around. £16.1 billion and the triple figure total equates together to a net gain of £45.5 billion for the UK economy.”

She explained that the team producing the report consulted with the early years sector, businesses, academia and others, and the paper identified “five impact opportunities” that businesses of all sizes could pursue. They build a culture that prioritizes early childhood, helping disadvantaged families access support, giving parents greater resources and flexibility in their work, nurturing children’s social and emotional skills, and supporting initiatives that increase access to affordable early education.