Prince William has made his third trip of the day as he crossed the border into Wales to meet with pupils of Maindee Primary School in Newport. The heir to the throne has a jam-packed couple of days planned as he launches his Homewards campaign, a five-year plan to help end homelessness in the UK, bringing together local government and organisations from across the country. During the first day of the launch of his latest project, William was joined by former Spice Girl Geri Halliwell, who is an advocate for the project.
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While at the school William and Geri heard first-hand accounts of how local educational facilities can play an important role by supporting children and families through intervening at the earliest point to prevent homelessness.
The cause is particularly close to the Prince’s heart, as he was first inspired to take action against homelessness by his late mother Princess Diana.
He explained how her taking him to a shelter when he was 11 left a lasting impression on him and influenced him to make the Homewards project happen.
He said in a speech today: “My first visit to a homelessness shelter was when I was 11 with my mother. The visits we made, left a deep and lasting impression.
“I met so many extraordinary people and listened to so many heart-breaking personal stories. Too many people have found themselves without a stable and permanent place to call home.”
William will announce further details of Homewards over the next two days as he visits six pilot projects across the country that have received grants of up to £500,000 each from the Royal Foundation, the charity that supports the work of the Prince and Princess of Wales.
Each location will see local authorities, businesses, housing organisations and individuals being encouraged to develop “bespoke” action plans for each area to build innovative new housing.
The heir to the throne started his day in south London with a visit to the Mosaic Clubhouse in London, which supports those living with mental health conditions.
William spoke with Clubhouse members with lived experiences of homelessness and heard how Mosaic has supported them during the most difficult times in their lives, as he hopes to end the link between poor mental health and becoming homeless.
Later in the day he travelled to Bournemouth where he visited charity centre Faithworks, a local enterprise which works in partnership with local businesses and produces items using carpentry.
The workshop helps those struggling with homelessness to help end the cycle of repeatedly ending up on the strets by offering them secure employment.
The Prince even took a turn in the workshop using a wood lathe to make a garden dipper and joked that he would try to keep all his fingers, but later admitted the process had been “therapeutic”.
