Prince William and his wife the Duchess of Cambridge will attend their first joint engagement of autumn next month, Kensington Palace has confirmed. William and Kate are scheduled to travel to the University of Oxford on Monday 8 September, where they will open The Dickson Poon University of Oxford China Centre Building. The facility is a new building that forms part of St Hugh's college, and is dedicated to students and researchers who are pursuing China-related studies.
© Photo: Getty ImagesPrince William and Kate will open a new building at the University of Oxford
During their visit, William and Kate are expected to take part in a traditional Chinese ribbon cutting ceremony in the courtyard of the building. They will also meet staff and students of St Hugh's college before being given a tour of the interior. According to the university's website, the new centre cost £21million to construct – £10million of which came from Hong Kong philanthropist Mr Dickson Poon CBE, after whom the building is named.
William and Kate opt for a UK 'staycation'The complex will provide 63 en-suite student bedrooms, a 100-seat lecture theatre, dining area and a range of conference and seminar facilities. It will also contain a dedicated library with study carrels and a reading room, which will provide a permanent home for books from the Bodleian Library's China Collection. The news of William and Kate's joint engagement comes shortly after the Duchess' jam-packed itinerary around Malta was revealed last week.
© Photo: Getty ImagesKate will travel to Malta at the end of September for her first overseas solo tour
Kate will be making her first overseas solo tour to the Mediterranean island on Saturday 20 September, where she will stay for two days. The mum of Prince George has been tasked with representing her grandmother-in-law The Queen to mark the 50th anniversary of Malta's independence.
Kate takes Prince George to Princess Diana memorial playgroundPart of her visit includes meeting with prime minister Joseph Muscat, attending an official Independence Day reception at the beautiful Upper Barrakka Gardens and conducting a walkabout around the old fortified city of Vittoriosa. As a History of Art graduate from the University of St Andrews, where she met her husband William, Kate may particularly enjoy her visit to St John's Co-Cathedral in the capital of Valletta, where she will view two paintings by Italian artist Caravaggio.
