Kate and Prince William’s "unusual" parenting choice with Prince George, Charlotte comes as they realise they "can’t undo destiny".
Over the years the Prince and Princess of Wales have forged their own path as devoted parents and the future King and Queen Consort. Striking this balance between their public roles and private family time at Adelaide Cottage likely isn’t easy and fans only get rare glimpses of Prince George, Charlotte and Louis. Prince William and Kate’s parenting approach is reportedly rather "unusual", with the BBC’s former royal correspondent Jennie Bond declaring that they took an "enlightened" decision to be incredibly "hands-on" when it comes to raising their three children.
Getting candid with OK!, the royal expert expressed her belief that this, as well as the influence from Kate’s family, make all the difference in "grounding" George, Charlotte and Louis.
"They are hands-on parents in a way neither Charles and Diana, nor the late Queen and Prince Philip ever were," Jennie claimed, reflecting on other royal parenting approaches. "From the start they have cared for their children themselves as much as possible with minimal outside help."
She described this as Kate and Prince William’s "unusual and enlightened decision", adding that whilst you "can’t undo the destiny you were born into" you can "make life more of a family affair than an upbringing in palaces and castles would allow".
Prince William and Kate both do the school run during term-time and largely take a break from royal duties during school holidays. This is quite different to King Charles and Princess Anne’s experience growing up in the Royal Family. Princess Margaret’s Lady-in-Waiting, Lady Anne Glenconner, previously explained to OK! that Queen Elizabeth was away a lot due to the intense demands of her job.
"[King] Charles and Princess Anne were so small when she became Queen and she just had so much to do," Lady Glenconner alleged, before later adding, "It was rather like she had two families, because when she had Andrew and Edward she was able to spend much more time with them."
Meanwhile, Kate previously told Giovanna Fletcher’s Happy Mum, Happy Baby podcast about how she used to go on family holidays as a child and how her parents were there cheering her on at every sports match. This parenting style is something she and Prince William have reportedly been emulating and Jennie believes that Carole and Michael Middleton have a "normalising influence" on their grandchildren's lives.
She said, "[D]on’t underestimate the normalising influence of having a happy, ordinary couple as grandparents. Carole and Michael Middleton remain an integral part of the extended family unit as they come from ordinary backgrounds and offer a grounding for the children."
The Middletons are incredibly close to the Wales family and royal expert Duncan Larcombe once suggested that Prince William was raised "very different[ly]" and wants to follow their example with his own children.
"William has based his children's upbringing on the Middleton model - three children, affluent, but hardworking parents and lots of love in the house,” he alleged to OK!. “By the time Kate was in her early twenties, she counted her mother and father on the list of her best friends. That’s what William and Kate are aspiring to with their children, but they also have to drip-feed George, and to some extent Charlotte and Louis, into the public domain."
Having two very “hands-on” parents and “grounding” grandparents is likely something Prince George, Charlotte and Louis value highly as they grow up in the royal spotlight and appear at certain high-profile royal events.
