Princess of Wales resumes early childhood work as she quietly returns to royal duties
Just one day after her deeply personal reflections on cancer recovery, Princess Catherine has resumed her royal responsibilities with quiet determination.
On the morning of July 3, the Princess of Wales hosted a key meeting at Windsor Castle, focused on her landmark initiative Shaping Us, which falls under the Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood.
According to the Court Circular, the official record of royal engagements, the private meeting was part of Catherine’s continued work to highlight the vital importance of early childhood development—a cause she has championed for years. The project, launched in 2021, seeks to place early years support at the forefront of public awareness, calling it “one of the most strategically important topics of our time.”
The meeting followed her moving return to the public eye a day earlier, when she visited the Royal Horticultural Society’s Wellbeing Garden at Colchester Hospital in Wessex. There, the Princess candidly spoke about the quiet emotional toll that often follows cancer treatment.
“You put on a sort of brave face, stoicism through treatment. Treatment’s done,” Catherine said during her visit. “Then it’s like, ‘I can crack on, get back to normal,’ but actually the phase afterwards is really difficult. You have to find your new normal—and that takes time.”
The mother-of-three, who announced her cancer remission earlier this year, continues to navigate her return to public life with compassion and quiet strength. Her behind-the-scenes work reflects not only her dedication to her causes but also her commitment to shaping the future—starting with the youngest minds.
