The Princess of Wales has not yet returned to work but remains fully up to date with the early years work that is taking place in her absence, it has been revealed at the launch of a new “milestone” report.
Wishing not to distract from the importance of the findings of the Early Years business working group, which was set up by the Princess last year, a palace spokesperson confirmed that it “should not be seen or reported on as Her Royal Highness returns to work.” .
They added: “You all know that early childhood is a huge priority for the Princess and so she has been fully updated throughout the development of the task force’s work and has seen the report.”
The report is an example of how the work of her Early Years Foundation continued despite Kate undergoing preventive chemotherapy.
The princesswhich “still needs room to catch up”, is “encouraged” by the findings, which state that the UK could reap £45.5 billion in economic benefits if businesses prioritized early childhood.
It recommends a range of interventions, from creating a culture inside and outside companies that prioritizes children to supporting parents with greater resources and flexibility in the workplace.
Among the eight-member task force are the chief executives of Ikea, NatWest Group and Deloitte.
Speaking about the report, described as “a huge appeal to early years”, Emma Franklin, director of consultancy at Deloitte, said: “We set a value of £45.5 billion, which is simply immense in terms of value added to the UK Economy.
“And that’s three simple things, which are productivity gains by allowing parents who want to work more hours to get back into the workforce and avoiding some of the recruitment retention costs for people leaving the workforce, but also in in terms of developing some of those really essential social and emotional skills in our under fives that will put them in such a good position as the future workforce for us in terms of skills around empathy, resilience and problem solving.
“I think it’s a really compelling argument for change.”
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Sky News visited a baby bank in north London run by Little Village.
Last year, they supported 8,500 children, 20% more than the previous year, and more and more working parents are looking for help.
Thea Jaffe has three children, including eight-month-old Isaac, who will need to go to daycare when she returns to work later this year.
Mother of three Thea Jaffe is struggling to raise her children
She said: “My rent is £2,000 a month, childcare is £3,000. It’s £5,000. I thought I had a good job, taking home £2,600 a month after tax, but apparently it’s not good enough.
“Yes, it’s really hard. I feel bad about it because I feel like there are times when I should be enjoying time with my kids, learning more about who they are, what they care about, what motivates them. But I’m just worried about Like, how are we going to, you know, how am I going to pay our bills?”
Little Village CEO Sophie Livingstone says businesses need to step up and she hopes the princess’s influence will help.
Little Village CEO Sophie Livingstone
“I have no doubt that she will move forward and continue with the companies and hold her feet to the fire to make a tangible difference,” she said.
“This is just the beginning, in my opinion. What we need now is to see these commitments come to fruition, to see this action, because the time is now, the need has never been greater.
“So I’m very grateful to the princess for bringing this to my attention. But now it’s time for business to move on.”
The report has been shared with Number 10, the Department of Health and the Department for Education, but those involved insist they will not lobby the government for change, but rather showcase the social impact that businesses can help drive.
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