Duchess Catherine praises science students as she heads back to school
The Duchess of Cambridge was impressed by pupils learning early child development studies on a visit to a school.
The 39-year-old royal was a special visitor at Nower Hill High School in Harrow, London this week, where she revealed to the youngsters that she herself is passionate about learning about babes' brains and development.
She told the classroom: “So really well done and I hope you found it interesting. It’s a real passion of mine, leaning about babies’ brains and how our adult brains develop and how our early childhood influences the adult brain.
“Keep thinking about it, keep chatting about it with your friends. Well done, super impressed and thank you for having me.”
The pupils aged between 11 to 14 were taking part in The Seen educational research project funded by Kindred2, the early year's organisation, which was developed by the University of Oxford.
The students took part in three lessons all about neuroscience.
Headteacher Louise Voden commented: “We are so delighted that the duchess chose to come to a large, mixed ability comprehensive in London. We have a wide range of pupils, from those going to Oxford out Cambridge to those have more challenging education needs. But all of them have really benefitted from this experience.”
Catherine launched her own research centre for early child development this summer.
The Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood - which marked the end of her 10 years of research on the subject - was announced to raise awareness and to help "transform lives".
In a video to mark the official launch of the centre, Catherine - who wore a necklace featuring the initials of her children, Princes George and Louis and Princess Charlotte - explained the importance of “the first five years of life” and how she sees this as a “golden opportunity” to create a “happier, more mentally healthy” society.
She said: "Working closely with others, the centre hopes to raise awareness of why the first five years of life are just so important for our future life outcomes, and what we can do as a society to embrace this golden opportunity to create a happier, more mentally healthy, more nurturing society.
"By working together, my hope is that we can change the way we think about early childhood, and transform lives for generations to come.
"Because I truly believe big change starts small."
The Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood is based on research showing the first five years of childhood fundamentally shape adulthood and that many of the challenges faced by adults such as addiction, violence, family breakdown and mental health stem from their earliest experiences.
The centre focuses on research and developing solutions with both the public and private voluntary sectors, as well as campaigning to raise awareness of issues.
