Princess Kate Confirms First Overseas Trip Since Cancer Diagnosis — and It Begins in Italy
Middleton sees her two-day visit as a fact-finding mission and a 'significant next step' for a cause close to her heart.
Kate Middleton has announced her first overseas work trip since her 2024 cancer diagnosis, and royal fans couldn't be prouder. On May 5, Kensington Palace confirmed she will visit Italy from May 13 to 14, marking a return to a fuller schedule after sharing news of her remission last year. Her two-day visit to Reggio Emilia will focus on early childhood, a cause close to her heart. As Patron of the Royal Foundation, she will meet families, educators, and business leaders to witness their work in action.
Middleton sees her two-day visit as a fact-finding mission, and a 'significant next step' for her Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood. A Kensington Palace spokesperson said, "The Princess is very much looking forward to visiting Italy next week and seeing first-hand how the Reggio Emilia approach creates environments where nature and loving human relationships come together to support children's development." She took a similar trip to Denmark in 2022 to learn more about children's outdoor lessons and the work at the LEGO Foundation Playlab at the University College Copenhagen. This is her first royal visit to the country, as she has only visited Italy once in 2000 during her gap year as a student.
The Princess of Wales established the Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood in 2021 to combine research, collaboration, and practical efforts to change how society values the first five years of a child's life. In January 2023, she introduced the Shaping Us campaign, which highlights the crucial role of the first few years in adult development. "As the Centre for Early Childhood continues to build its work internationally, this visit is an opportunity to connect the Shaping Us Framework with leading global approaches, and to highlight a shared understanding that it is in these early years, through the natural world and the warmth of human connection, that we begin to lay the foundations for a resilient and healthy future," her spokesperson continued.
Middleton has long made early childhood a central focus of her royal work. In addition to the Shaping Us framework, which she says "identifies the key social and emotional skills that enable us to thrive," she has also expanded initiatives to include businesses and corporations. She aims to encourage workplaces to better support employees with young children, recognizing that without this support, proper care and nurturing in the early years can be challenging to achieve.
Backing her efforts at the Royal Foundation Centre is Harvard University's Professor Robert Waldinger, who believes the Princess is having a 'huge impact' on early childhood development. He told PEOPLE, "Early childhood development is not glamorous. It's quiet and privately done, and the lack of resources doesn't get a lot of attention. And the caregivers are so underappreciated." He added, "So, what she's [Middleton] doing by lending her voice to this is huge. And then bringing in business leaders who have a chance to make a difference is an incredible way to use the platform that she has."
