Kate Middleton opens up about the struggle of learning to be royal during a visit to a youth charity

The Princess of Wales spoke about the struggle of learning to be a royal – and the challenge of bringing up children with different personalities – on a visit to a youth charity today.

Kate also talked to girls from a school in Bristol about her own vulnerabilities after losing to double Olympic champion Dame Kelly Holmes in a giant game of noughts and crosses.

Away from the cameras the Princess, wearing a £359 bright yellow LK Bennett jacket with white trousers and trainers, answered questions from pupils from St Katherine’s School in Bristol about her life, telling them she had never thought about becoming a royal until she fell in love with William, according to one person present.

Dame Kelly said: ‘They were just asking her about being a royal. Was it something that she wanted to do? And she said she had to learn. It’s a struggle to know that you can be accepted and fit in and you are still learning every day.

‘Doing public speaking isn’t a natural thing for lots of people is it? And she was saying she is still working that out but has to project. So you know again, she humanised everything. Not everyone is perfect.’

The Princess, 41, went to the Percy Community Centre in Bath to see the work the Dame Kelly Holmes Trust, a charity set up by the athlete in 2008, does using sports stars as mentors to support young people to find the skills and confidence they need to succeed in education, work and life.

It is an issue close to Kate’s heart and she spoke to the girls about her own path to becoming a Princess and helping her own children develop amid a nationwide mental health crisis among young people, a wave of anxiety and depression that has coincided with the rise of social media and ubiquitous smart phones.

Dame Kelly hopes the visit, marking Mental Health Awareness Week, will lead to the Princess’s philanthropic Royal Foundation working closely with her trust around the country.

The two women got on like a house on fire. ‘She was lovely,’ said Dame Kelly. ‘She said: “ask me questions as well.”

‘I asked her, I said you’ve got three children and do you see different traits in them? She said: “Oh yes,” and she said that’s the thing. It’s like learning how to handle the different traits and different needs and abilities even with three young children shows her the need to do it with masses of children.’

The Princess of Wales finished second best after taking on double Olympic champion Dame Kelly Holmes – at a game of bean-bag noughts and crosses during her visit. 

Looking effortlessly elegant, the mother-of-three sported a £359 bright yellow blazer from LK Bennett, which she paired with a white t-shirt and matching trousers and £120 Veja trainers. 

The children from St Katherine’s School in Bristol are taking part in the On Track To Achieve programme, delivered by their athlete mentor and Paralympic gold medalist Liz Johnson.

In bright summer sunshine on Tuesday, the opposing groups had to run forwards in turn and throw a bean-bag on to a grid on the ground.

Kate did her best but Dame Kelly’s team won twice.

After the first victory, the track and field star held her arms aloft and admitted she is ‘slightly competitive’.

The princess joked: ‘You would never have guessed.’

Dame Kelly founded her national youth development organisation on the belief every young person needs a champion.

It pairs world class athletes with youngsters, who may lack confidence or have other issues, so the sportsmen or women can pass on their winning mindset and help the schoolchildren develop the skills and confidence they need to succeed in life.

The princess later sat down to chat to the pupils, all girls aged from 11-13, who spoke about their experiences at school, home life and the benefits of being mentored by a sports star.

Kate swept her hair into her favourite bouncy blowdry style for the engagement, and opted for a neutral makeup look.

She added a touch of blusher to her cheeks and a sweep of eyeliner across her lids for the occasion.

Meanwhile she kept her jewellery to a minimum, donning her £795 earrings from Emily Mortimer.

The brand, which is a favourite of Kate’s sister-in-law Meghan, describes the earrings online as featuring ‘versatile’ jewels which ‘are the sparkliest of pavé diamonds.’

The jewels are pear cut drops, which can be detached from the polished gold hoops surrounded by the sparkliest of pavé diamonds.

Kate is known for her love of highly personal jewellery, but also often repeats pieces or opts for pieces from high street stores such as Accessorize. 

Meanwhile she has also long been a fan of the LK Bennett brand, first opting to wear the British label more than a decade ago. 

The yellow blazer is a new addition to her wardrobe, and is described by the British high street brand as ‘part of a key suit in our spring collection’.

An online description reads: ‘The vibrant Mya blazer is in our Peggy Guggenheim-inspired bold and bright yellow.

‘Crafted in Portugal from a classic tailoring fabric, it’s a single-breasted style with a curved peak lapel, a single horn-effect button, front welt pockets and a beautiful tailored cut. 

‘Wear it with the matching trousers and our Paris print silk blouse for a luxurious and playful hit of dopamine dressing.’

Today’s engagement comes during Mental Health Awareness week, and the royal discussed with the pupils how working with an athlete mentor has helped them.

They said the charity had helped them to better express their emotions, build resilience, and promote positive mental health and wellbeing. 

The Dame Kelly Holmes Trust is a youth development charity founded on the belief that every young person needs a champion. 

The organisation puts world class athletes shoulder to shoulder with young people to pass on their winning mindset and provide coaching and mentoring, helping those who are facing adversity to develop the skills and confidence they need to succeed in education, work and life. 

The trust delivers a range of wellbeing programmes within education, community and children’s hospital settings.

Among these is the On Track To Achieve programme, which is targeted towards 11-19-yea- olds, including those with social, emotional or mental health challenges, or children who would benefit from the support of a positive role model to achieve their potential. 

The programme helps young people to build healthy relationships in school and with the wider community and understand the importance of physical and mental wellness. 

With a strong focus on their own personal development, it also promotes positive behaviours and attitudes, and sets them up to achieve. 

The princess has long been a champion of prioritising mental wellbeing, including that of children and young people. 

She has dedicated her time to supporting various mental health programmes, such as the launch of Heads Together, Shout 85258, and the Mentally Healthy Schools programme. 

She is also patron of a number of charities which are focused on promoting and providing mental health support to those in need.

In January 2023, The Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood launched Shaping Us, a long-term campaign spearheaded by the princess.

The campaign aims to transform the issue of early childhood from one of scientific interest to one of the most strategically important topics of our time.

The campaign also highlights that by focusing our collective time, energy, and resources to build a supportive, nurturing world around all children and those caring for them, we can make a huge difference to the physical and mental health and happiness of generations to come.

Kate’s engagement today comes after a busy few weeks for the princess, in what appears to mark a new era for the royal mother-of-three.

She has released a number of behind-the-scenes videos on social media over the during the King’s Coronation, showing her family preparing for the historic events.

The video, released on the Wales’s official YouTube account, shows William and Kate meeting crowds of royal fans on the Mall outside Buckingham Palace the evening before the Coronation.

It then shows William and Kate getting ready at Kensington Palace along with Charlotte and Louis the following morning.

The royal couple can be seen wearing their stunning Royal Victorian Order Mantles, while Kate wowed with her white Alexander McQueen dress.

The family then leave the palace to travel to Westminster Abbey in a gold carriage alongside thousands of armed forces personnel and Buckingham Palace household members.

William, Kate and their children are then seen standing on the Buckingham Palace balcony along with other members of the Royal Family after the Coronation ceremony.

The royals and the tens of thousands of people gathered outside the palace were then treated to a flyover by the Red Arrows despite the poor weather.

The following day, the family can be seen in the film pitching in for the Big Help Out – a volunteering event held across the country to celebrate the King’s years of public service.

Prince Louis can be seen helping out with a digger while his brother George has a go at archery before the family join in a group photo with the other volunteers.

The video ends with clips taken at the Coronation Concert at Windsor Castle which starred Katy Perry, Lionel Ritchie and Take That and where William made a speech in honour of the King.  

He told his father: ‘We are all so proud of you.’

Hours later, the princess opened the final of Eurovision in spectacular fashion, with a touching piano performance tribute to Ukraine.

Kate played piano alongside last year’s Ukrainian winners, the Kalush Orchestra, in a stunning opening sequence for the grand final, shown to an estimated worldwide audience of 160million.