Kate gets political! Duchess breaks new ground in major royal first as she meets ministers
KATE, Duchess of Cambridge, was pictured while hosting her first roundtable discussion with UK politicians.
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The Duchess was photographed smiling while leading a meeting focused on the results of a survey carried out by Ipsos on behalf of the Royal Foundation's Centre for Early Childhood. Kate arrived at the Royal Institution in London wearing a smart pink blazer over a white top.
She completed her look with trousers in the same shade as the blazer and heels.
The pictures also showed Kate with pages of notes spread in front of her.
Ahead of the beginning of the meeting, the Duchess was snapped shaking hands with her high-profile guests, including Health Secretary Sajid Javid.
Other Government members in attendance included Minister for Families Will Quince and officials from the Health and Social Care and Education departments.
Kate's first-ever roundtable discussion with leading political figures aimed at showing there is a "real appetite" in the country to see children’s mental health being prioritised.
The Duchess and her guests discussed the results of a survey conducted on 4,682 adults.
Among them, 55 percent recognised that future mental health is the most likely part of adult life to be affected by early years’ experience.
And seven in 10 said to believe early childhood development should be more of a priority for society.
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However, the poll also showed that less than a fifth of people polled, 17 percent, recognised the unique significance of the first five years in the life of children - something the Duchess has been relentlessly campaigning for years.
Speaking about the findings, Kate said: "Our experiences in early childhood fundamentally impact our whole life and set the foundation for how we go on to thrive as individuals, with one another, as a community and as a society.
"The findings published today present us with a huge opportunity and demonstrate there is real appetite from the public to bring this issue up all of our agendas.
"There is more we can all do - every member of society can play a key role, whether that is directly with a child or by investing in the adults around them - the parents, the carers, the early years workforce and more."
She added: "If we come together to raise the importance of early childhood development, we’ll soon see that healthy, happy individuals make for a healthier, happier world.
"Which is why every second we spend with a child is an investment in our collective future."
Prior to launching a series of initiatives focused on the early years, Kate worked behind the scenes to gather knowledge and experts on the issue.
In March 2018, she created a steering group to look at the necessary moves to make a positive difference in the lives of children.
Kate also tied links with organisations focused on mental health, addiction and motherhood over the years.
In January 2020, she launched a successful nationwide survey titled 5 Big Questions on the Under-Fives.
The results of this survey - which in a month gathered more than 500,000 responses - as well as experts' research, case studies and analysis were presented at a special online forum hosted by the Royal Foundation in November 2020.
This marked a major stepping stone to the launch of the Royal Foundation's Centre for Early Childhood in June 2021, which pledges to "drive awareness of, and action on, the extraordinary impact of the early years, changing what we think and do on early childhood, in order to transform society for generations to come".
Still keen to learn more about the early years, Kate travelled to Copenhagen in February to see first-hand the Danish world-leading approach to childhood development.
Over the past months, she also visited a number of baby banks in the UK.