The Prince of Wales is in the West Midlands of England visiting a school and community projects tackling better well-being
Prince William is continuing his work to highlight better mental health for young people — and showing that you never know what might come out of a social media post.
The Prince of Wales, 41, stepped out amid his wife Kate Middleton’s ongoing cancer treatment to visit a school that had caught his eye for their award-winning student-led initiatives. William headed to Birmingham, in England’s West Midlands, on April 25 to see St. Michael’s Church of England High School in Sandwell.
The school came on the royal’s radar after 12-year-old Freddie Hadley wrote a letter to Prince William and Princess Kate, 42, that was shared on social media for World Mental Health Day in Oct. 2023. Freddie invited the couple to their campaign’s launch, writing, “Our passion for mental health has given us opportunities to organize and lead community events, present at national conferences, take part in radio interviews and even gain celebrity endorsement.”
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Prince William personally replied to the letter on X (formerly Twitter) by writing, “Good afternoon Freddie, I’m so sorry Catherine and I can’t be with you and the rest of the students at St Michael’s today. Tackling mental health challenges and stigmas head on is so important, please keep up this important work.” The Prince of Wales signed the tweet with a “W,” the sign that the note came directly from the royal rather than his team.
“Your letter worked,” Prince William told Freddie Hadley, 12, from Sandwell, West Midlands on Thursday. They then chatted about how Freddie and his school pals talk about their feelings.
“They open up?” William asked. “What’s been the biggest thing? Talking about things?”
Good afternoon Freddie, I’m so sorry Catherine and I can’t be with you and the rest of the students at St Michael’s today. Tackling mental health challenges and stigmas head on is so important, please keep up this important work. W
— The Prince and Princess of Wales (@KensingtonRoyal) October 10, 2023
On Thursday, Prince William got to see firsthand the work of the Matrix Project, which Freddie highlighted in his letter for bringing boys aged 11 to 14 together for weekly meetings that develop ideas and projects to tackle mental health challenges. The royal joined a session with some of the boys and was told how the group launched the #AmIManlyEnough campaign last year to encourage males to communicate more about their feelings and tackle the stigma of mental health.
William also met representatives of Student Voice to hear about their projects set up at the school to promote positive mental health and joined a workshop with students discussing issues related to well-being, including designing their own calm kits and their dream well-being hub.
“What a beautiful opportunity for our youngsters to shine a spotlight on everything we do in school,” headteacher Christina Handy-Rivett told PEOPLE. “And to have His Royal Highness who pioneers and supports mental health it was such a special moment.”
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“We are extraordinarily excited and so proud. It’s such a unique response to help support and raise awareness of what we are undertaking as a school community to really engage strategies to support mental health and wellbeing .”
Handy-Rivett added that they were “shocked” at the overwhelming response to the letter which they posted on social media.
”We are always encouraging children to dream big — I say to them the sky’s the limit and don’t put limitations on yourself and if you don’t ask, you don’t get. And this is a perfect example of that,” added Kerry Whitehouse, senior mental health lead at the school to PEOPLE.
“For us to have members of the royal family who are actively championing mental health is incredible. For young people to look at the future king and see him championing work and being passionate about the same things as they are is incredibly important.”
“It’s a huge issue which often gets overlooked. There is no price tag you can put on seeing influential people, on another scale — and these are global influencers — championing the messages our students believe in.”
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Later on Thursday, Prince William is set to see two more organizations focused on giving a second chance to those who are homeless and fighting addiction.
Since Princess Kate made her announcement on March 22 that she was undergoing treatment, William has curtailed his public duties, making sure he is home as much as possible for the couple’s three children — Prince George, 10, Princess Charlotte, 8, and Prince Louis, who celebrated his sixth birthday on April 23 — and helping Kate.
Both Prince William and Princess Kate have prioritized the promotion of mental health for much of their public life. Alongside Prince Harry, they spearheaded the successful Heads Together campaign that did much for raising awareness of the challenges many people face.
