Prince William has made a renewed call for action towards homelessness as he prepares to mark the third anniversary of his Homewards initiative on Tuesday.
The Prince of Wales, 44, will talk at an event about how homelessness is a “systemic failure” and say that systems can “help prevent it”, just as they cause it.
William has previously said that visiting shelters with his late mother Diana, Princess of Wales, as a child left a deep and lasting impression and inspired his work.
William is expected to say: “Homelessness is not an individual failure; it is a systemic failure. And, if systems help create the problem, then systems can help prevent it.
“By trialling new approaches, Homewards is demonstrating how prevention can be embedded across every part of our society.
“Proving that our true strength emerges not in isolation, but in a shared purpose that makes us greater than the sum of our parts.“
William launched his ambitious five-year Homewards initiative in June 2023 to create a blueprint to end homelessness in all its forms and has taken stock of the progress so far.
Prince William’s mission to end homelessness
Diana first took William and his younger brother, Prince Harry, to The Passage in Westminster when he was 11 years old, inspiring a lifelong dedication to the cause.
Speaking in his 2024 ITV documentary, Prince William: We Can End Homelessness, the future King recalled: “My mother took me to The Passage. She took Harry and I both there.
© Tim Graham Photo Library via Get“I must have been about 11, I think, probably, at the time. Maybe 10. I’d never been to anything like that before. And I was a bit anxious as to what to expect.”
This Christmas, William followed in his mother’s footsteps by taking his eldest son, Prince George, 12, to help make Christmas lunch at the Passage.
In a video shared on the Prince and Princess of Wales’s official social media accounts, George could be seen wearing an apron, hanging up Christmas decorations and preparing food.
© Andrew Parsons / Kensington Pala“Proud to join volunteers and staff at The Passage in preparing Christmas lunch – this year with another pair of helping hands,” it was captioned.
What is Prince William’s Homewards project?
In 2023, William launched his Homewards project, which aims to make homelessness “rare, brief and unrepeated”.
Six Homewards locations were chosen – Newport, Lambeth, Belfast, Aberdeen, Sheffield and the three neighbouring Dorset towns of Poole, Bournemouth and Christchurch – to deliver bespoke solutions to the homelessness issues in each area.
© Alamy Stock PhotoDuring the past three years, Homewards has invested £1.9 million across the six locations through the Homewards Fund, with another £3.5 million leveraged through grants and private philanthropy, organisers have said.
A further £2.3 million worth of surplus goods has been used to furnish Homewards homes, and 250 people have been supported into stable employment. In Aberdeen alone, 31 people are now living in homes created through the programme.
William has travelled to all six of the Homewards locations during the past three years to highlight the aims of his project.
Celebrity supporters include former Lioness Fara Williams, TV presenter Gail Porter, Aston Villa footballer Tyrone Mings, Spice Girl Geri Horner, Opera star Sir Bryn Terfel, and broadcaster Sara Cox.
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