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PRINCE William could take Prince George, 11, Princess Charlotte, nine, and Prince Louis, six, to sleep rough like he did as a boy, according to a royal expert.
This week, the future king’s two-part documentary – Prince William: We Can End Homelessness – aired on ITV, with William talking about his five-year goal.
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Speaking on The Sun’s Royal Exclusive show, author Phil Dampier said: “He’s taking on his mother’s legacy, but also, he’s going to hand it on to his children.
“I’m sure it’s only a matter of time before he lets George and Charlotte and Louis sleep rough overnight and get a taste of what he did when he was a kid.”
In 2009, Prince William spent a night sleeping rough on the streets of London to experience being homeless.
The royal bedded down next to a group of wheelie bins near Blackfriars bridge in an event organised by the homelessness charity Centrepoint.
Diana’s influence
His new documentary also showed how Princess Diana took him to a homeless shelter as a child, along with Prince Harry.
She introduced her sons to homelessness by taking them to The Passage, a shelter in London’s Westminster, and getting them involved in charity Centrepoint.
William has released previously unseen photos for the documentary of visits in 1993, one of him holding Christmas presents and another posing in a kitchen.
Making a rare reference to his brother by name, he says: “My mother took me to The Passage.
“She took Harry and I both there.
“I might have been about 11, I think at the time. Maybe ten.
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“I’d never been to anything like that before. And I was a bit anxious as to what to expect.
“My mother went about her usual part of making everyone feel relaxed and having a laugh.
“I remember at the time thinking ‘well, if everyone’s not got a home, they’re all going to be really sad’.
“But it was incredible how happy an environment it was.
“I remember playing chess and chatting, and that’s when it dawned on me that there are other people out there who don’t have the same life as you do.”
George and Charlotte chat
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Prince William shared how he has already spoken to George and Charlotte about homelessness on the school run.
William said George, 11, and Charlotte, nine, were lost in thought as he spoke to them when they spotted people sleeping rough in London.
When asked about when he would raise the subject to the kids, he explained: “I probably am already doing it on the school run.
“The first few times I thought, ‘Do I bring this up? Or should I wait and see if any of them noticed?’. Sure enough, they did.
My mother took me to The Passage. I’d never been to anything like that before. And I was a bit anxious as to what to expect.
Prince William
“They were just sort of in silence after I had said what was going on.
“I can see the brain going with this, and trying to work out what that means.
“And I do think it’s really important that you start those conversations when the children are small, so that they understand the world around them, and they’re not just living in their own little worlds.”
We’ve previously seen William and Kate Middleton introduce their kids to charitable projects, by taking them to volunteer at a baby bank in 2023, and delivering food to the vulnerable during lockdown.
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William’s doc
ITV’s Prince William: We Can End Homelessness follows the first year of his Homewards programme, a five-year initiative aiming to make homelessness “rare, brief and unrepeated” in all forms in six target areas.
In the show, he returns to The Passage, of which he is patron, in the programme to help again with the Christmas meals.
I don’t believe we should be living with homelessness in the 21st century. I don’t want to just talk about it. I don’t want to just listen. I actually want to see someone smile because their life has been made better
Prince William
He says: “The ultimate ambition is to prove homelessness is a solvable issue, and can be prevented, and it doesn’t need to be as big or as bad as it is at the moment.”
Wills says he believes Diana “would be proud of what I’m doing”.
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He goes on: “I don’t believe we should be living with homelessness in the 21st century.
“I don’t want to just talk about it.
“I don’t want to just listen.
“I actually want to see someone smile because their life has been made better.”
He also hits back at critics who say he is too rich for the task and the role is too political.
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He says: “I come with no other agenda than desperately trying to help people who are in need.
“I see that as part of my role.
“Why else would I be here if I’m not using my role properly to influence and help?”
Centrepoint CEO Seyi Obakin adds: “I’d rather have a prince who is living in a palace and is exercised about homelessness and is doing something about it, than one who is aloof.”
Homewards focuses on schemes in Lambeth, South London; Newport, South Wales; Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole in Dorset; Aberdeen; Sheffield and Northern Ireland.
