The Princess of Wales reminisced on her student days as she visited a university in the East Midlands today.
Kate, 41, chatted to students at Nottingham Trent University where she was discussing the importance of youth mental health when she declared: ‘I’d love to be a student again!’
For the visit, the mother-of-three opted for a cream £110 knitted top from one of her favourite brands, Sezane, with a matching skirt costing £135 – in a break from the stream of suits she has chosen on her recent public engagements as she visited the university’s campus.
She paired her outfit with camel pumps and chose elegant teardrop pearl earrings, and wore her thick brunette locks tucked behind one ear. To accessorise, she carried her £365 Mini Holly Bag from Tusting.
Kate’s solo visit to the university follows her joint engagement with Prince William in Birmingham yesterday, where the couple hosted a youth mental health forum with BBC Radio 1.
The Princess of Wales broke from her suited streak as she arrived at Nottingham Trent University this morning
As the Princess hears from students this morning about how the university supports them in maintaining sound mental health, her husband William will be touring an emergency response hub in Milton Keynes to hear about how blue-light workers look after their mental health, given the difficult and traumatic events they witness.
Nottingham Trent University works with its counterpart, the University of Nottingham, to support its students by taking a community-based approach to caring for their wellbeing.
As part of her visit, Kate dropped into a Freshers Fair-style exhibition which has been set up to showcase how mental health of students is cared for.
She is also learning about the universities’ peer-to-peer support system and is chatting to three students about how the mentoring programme words.
It wasn’t long before the Princess got chatting to students on the campus, smiling as she joked around
The Princess’s all-cream knitted ensemble marked a change in the weather as the unseasonably warm October temperatures begin to drop
The Princess smiled as she chatted to a young woman who had queued up in chilly weather to meet her
After enjoying a chat with the royal fan who had gathered to meet her, Kate happily posed for a selfie
The Princess waved to the huge crows of royal fans who had gathered to meet her outside the campus
One of the royal fans had gifted the Princess a posy of flowers which contained pink and red buds as well as eucalyptus leaves
The Princess took the hand of one of the well wishers who had queued up outside the university to say hello
As Kate stopped to chat to some of the students, people had their phones out to try and take a snap of the royal
Kate’s stunning bouquet of flowers contained deep pink roses, matched with fuchsia colours and eucalyptus leaves
The royal mother-of-three carried the flowers and her Tusting Mini Holly bag in one hand as she left the campus
As she departed the university campus, the Princess of Wales shook hands with John Peace, Lord-Lieutenant of Nottinghamshire, who had accompanied her
As she completed her tour of the university, Princess Kate took part in a walkabout where she met some pupils
During her visit, Kate addressed a room of students and discussed her love of sport, which she had time to explore at university
Princess Kate joked that she would love to be a student again as she chatted to other students about their mental health
Speaking to the students, Princess Kate joked she would ‘love to be a student again’ as she reminisced on her St Andrew’s days
During her meetings with students, the Princess of Wales was presented with teddy bears in graduation gowns
Princess Kate took part in a discussion with students, mentors and university workers, discussing how they look after their mental health
The royal sat down for a table talk on how mental health can be protected through forming a strong support network and learnt about the university’s tracking system to monitor how well students are engaging
During the discussion, the Princess heard from other students about their own mental health
Princess Kate chatted to the students and members of the student union about how wellbeing is looked after
The discussion is part of a busy morning of activities by which the royal will learn how the universities support their students
The Princess kept her make-up simple for the occasion, choosing a nude lip, a touch of blusher and a sweep of eyeliner
The mother-of-three, who has a passion for working to improve mental health, listened intently as the students spoke to her about support they receive
The royal mother-of-three beamed as she met with students at the university who take part in peer-to-peer mentoring
Students lined up to chat to the Princess about their mental health initiatives and the support they receive from their institutions
As she walked into the student union past the grand white columns, the Princess turned out to look at the royal fans who had gathered to see her
During a chat with students in which she touched on her time at university, in a video from Nottinghamshire Live, Kate revealed how she ‘loves challenging herself’ in the fields of music, sport and art.
She added it’s something she encourages her own children do to, in ‘trying out new things.
The Princess said: ‘University, for me, was when I learnt to try out because there’s so much on offer.’
She then joked: ‘I’d love to be a student again!’ to which the room erupted in laughter.
Focusing in on the type of activity to which she has always been drawn, Kate noted her love of sport, telling students, ‘I love to be outside’.
In particular, she noted how she tried out hockey and tennis at St Andrews, where she met her future husband Prince William – but also developed her love of taking photos in the photography club too.
Princess Kate arrived at the university campus to a roaring crowd of people who had gathered to meet her
Princess Kate was led into the student union by officials at the university
As part of her visit the Princess of Wales visited a Freshers Fair-style exhibition on mental health
Princess Kate was led through the student union at Nottingham Trent University by its president Anna O’Hara
The Princess of Wales, 41, chose a knitted two-piece in a nude shade, paired with nude pumps and a clutch
The Princess looked a touch windswept as her thick brunette locks were moved by the gusts as she arrived
As she walked into a campus building at the East Midlands university, students lined up to take snaps of the royal
The Princess smiled as she arrived on the university’s campus where she will speak to students about their mental health
Princess Kate’s arrival at Nottingham Trent University marks her second consecutive engagement focused on mental health
Kate’s knitted cream co-ord is from one of her favourite brands, French label Sezane, with the top costing £110 and the bottoms at £135
The Princess of Wales broke from her suit streak to don the cream knitted two piece as she arrived on the campus
Her ribbed jumper featured button detailing on the sleeves, on show as Princess Kate waved to fans
Princess Kate wore her thick brunette locks tucked behind one ear and styled in loose, cascading curls
Princess Kate’s knitted two-piece was a break from the streak of suits she has recently worn for public engagements
Never one to shy away from taking part in group activities, Princess Kate is also getting involved with the ‘step in circle’ – a workshop part of Nottingham Trent’s induction programme for new students.
The method is used as part of the university’s Welcome Workshop for new sudents. The aim of the workshop is to improve the confidence of the new arrivals and to let them know about the support networks and tools they have available.
Finally, Her Royal Highness will learn about how Nottingham Trent University is using data derived from student behaviour to identify those who may not be thriving.
The university has created a ‘dashboard’ which uses learning analytics to measure a student’s engagement with their course.
When a student stops engaging, this can indicate issues with their wellbeing and prompts the University to proactively reach out to understand the student’s reason for disengagement and help navigate them to appropriate support.
The information is also given directly to the students to help them manage their own learning and is used for personalised support and tutorial discussions with staff.
During a mental health forum for young people in Birmingham yesterday, the Princess of Wales delivered a rare, rousing speech about how young people should become in touch with their emotions in order to be able to monitor their own wellbeing.
In a touching gesture, the Princess opted to wear a pair of star earrings, which she had been gifted earlier this year by a woman who lost her 17-year-old daughter Issy Renton to suicide.
After meeting Kate earlier this year, Mrs Renton said: ‘My daughter Issy took her own life. The proceeds from the earrings are going to a charity called Brave Minds, a mental health charity that supports children using the platforms of rugby clubs. Mental health is such an important issue.
‘She was wonderful, Issy, a real breath of fresh air. She had wonderful, wonderful friends, surrounded herself with the best people.
‘She was owning life, doing so well in her A levels, she was going to do an elite rugby programme, she payed touch rugby for England and got a gold medal in the summer.
‘But she was also struggling with depression. Everything was harder than it was a supposed to be. We thought she was obviously doing better than she was.’
Mrs Renton added that Kate told her she would wear the earrings in future.