The Princess of Wales is said to be “excited” by her business taskforce’s new report that claims greater focus and investment in early childhood could generate at least £45bn for Britain.
Leading businesses have endorsed her prioritisation of early childhood and joined her movement in a bid to deliver a rallying call to fellow business leaders across the country.
Kate, who has taken a step back from royal duties while she undergoes chemotherapy for an undisclosed form of cancer, has seen the report by the Royal Foundation Business Taskforce for Early Childhood (RFBTEC) and been briefed on its contents.
The importance of early childhood has become Kate’s “life work”, having spent more than a decade championing the issue. She established the Taskforce in March 2023 to galvanise business action on early childhood.
Since then, Taskforce members Aviva, The Cooperative Group, Deloitte, Iceland Foods, IKEA UK and Ireland, The LEGO Group, NatWest Group and Unilever UK, have worked together to identify the scale of the opportunity and the role that business can play.
Written “for business by business” the landmark report sets out how a greater focus on early childhood would create a happier and more productive workforce today, and transform the health and wellbeing of the UK economy and society for generations to come.
It details how investing in early childhood could generate at least £45.5 billion in value added for the national economy each year.
This includes £12.2bn from equipping people with improved social and emotional skills in early childhood, £16.1bn from reducing the need to spend public funds on remedial steps for adverse childhood experiences and £17.2bn from supporting parents and caregivers of under-fives who work.
The report, titled ‘Prioritising early childhood for a happier, healthier society’, identifies five areas in which business have the opportunity to make the greatest impact.
Firstly, businesses should build a culture that prioritises early childhood and help families access the basic support and essentials they need.
They should also offer parents and caregivers greater support, resources, choice, and flexibility with their work and prioritise and nurture social and emotional skills in children and the adults in their lives.
Finally, businesses should support initiatives which increase access to quality, affordable and reliable early childhood education.
Emma Franklin, a Director at Deloitte, who has been heavily involved in the work of the Taskforce, said: “These game-changing areas provide a broad framework for business to consider what actions they could take in any or all of these areas to really shift the dial.”
It is hoped that the report will be used as a blueprint for businesses, as those involved were keen to stress that even small changes can have a huge societal impact.
The Princess has been kept fully updated on the progress of the report during her recovery, with a Kensington Palace spokesperson saying early childhood continues to be a “huge priority” for her.
Christian Guy, Executive Director of the Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood, added: “I know, having briefed The Princess on this, that she is enormously grateful to the members of the Taskforce who have made such fantastic progress on this work over the past year.
“She feels passionately about the transformational impact of getting this right together, both for the current generation and for many more to come.
“I know that she is keen to encourage all businesses, no matter what their size or purpose, to join us on this journey and is looking forward to seeing momentum grow in the coming months.”
The report is not an indication that Kate is returning to royal duties, as she will only resume her work when she is cleared by her doctors.
When she revealed her cancer diagnosis in March she appealed for “time, space and privacy” for her and her family.
Alongside the report, the Taskforce members have committed to taking action on the issue and several have announced new initiatives as part of the first tranche of action.
For example, the LEGO Group is donating 3,000 LEGO® Education Build Me “Emotions” sets, supported by training materials, to early years providers in the UK, helping children to explore emotions in a fun and engaging way.
Throughout the rest of this year, The Centre for Early Childhood and Taskforce members will be speaking to business leaders across the UK to encourage businesses, large and small, to join this movement.