Prince William is being applauded for an important ground breaking leadership trait passed down from Princess Diana. The heir to the throne is passionate about confronting issues of today head on, rather than retreating to the highly prepared and ‘sanitised’ surroundings that often await royal guests. “No, no, don’t do that.
It’s actually really important that they see what life is actually like,” was the Prince’s clear instruction before visiting a needy community in the United Kingdom.
According to the Prince’s former private secretary Lord Simon Case – who worked with the future monarch between 2018 and 2020 – he wanted to get off the beaten track when he visited vulnerable areas.
Lord Case told The Telegraph: “Often, officials would say ‘Should we not go and clean up that housing estate?’ There might be drug needles on the ground. They wanted to tidy up before they got there but the Prince would say, ‘No, no, don’t do that.’
Because actually it is really important that they see what life is actually like.”
It was a request that directly followed Princess Diana’s belief that her sons need to see life for themselves. In order to bring home how difficult life could be for ordinary people, Princess Diana frequently took young Prince William and Prince Harry to visit homeless people’s clinics, homeless shelters andsoup kitchens. This grounded mentality is reflected today in his commitment to homelessness with his Homewards initiative.