The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge are due to visit north Wales to meet organisations supporting young people and tackling mental health issues. The visit will have struck a chord with 33-year-old William, who is a patron of homelessness charity Centrepoint.
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First stop for the royal couple was the headquarters of Gisda, which was set up in 1985 to provide support and accommodation for homeless young people in the area. “Past year alone we supported 2,000 young people”.
William and Kate met a few of the charity’s users and volunteer staff at its catering training centre known as Te a Coffi.
The Duchess said that all children deserve time, attention and love from the adults in their lives and that many children, even those from happy and stable homes, are finding “that their heads are just too full”.
The Duchess asked her how had she heard about Gisda. She added that she was also attending a parenting group and plans to go to Bangor University after previously nearly giving up on her studies.
It was reported that the Duchess wrote the speech herself and that royal aides reportedly said that her address was “very much her own”.
The couple were shown the kitchen as well as the Fan Sgram – takeaway van – Sgram being a Cofi word for food.
The royal couple moved across town to the local branch of mental health charity Mind where they viewed a photography exhibition entitled “Mute: are you being heard?”
The Duchess sat down with Jeff King, 16, of Beaumaris, who showed and explained his artwork, Jeff said he could “express myself through my art” and that it was a way to deal with his problems including feeling anxious socially.
The project by Ynys Monday and Gwynedd’s local Mind organisation is created to give young people a voice to talk about their experiences living with mental health problems.
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Kate said she had noticed a pattern where poor mental health in adulthood was often caused by “unresolved childhood challenges” and called on headteachers to use the access they have to “tens of thousands of children” to “make an impact” on those children who need to be listened to.
