Only last month, the Duchess of Cambridge told a fellow parent that she would "see them at the school gate," and it appears that Kate is keen to keep her word. The Duchess will take it in turns with her husband Prince William to do the school run when their son Prince George starts at Thomas's Battersea in September. The couple will continue to be hands-on parents, with the intention of dropping off and picking up George from school every day.
Everything you need to know about George's new school
The south-west London school is about a half-hour drive away from Kensington Palace. William, 34, and Kate, 35, could have chosen the Kensington sister branch of Thomas's but they are believed to have been drawn to the "village" feel Battersea provides. Like fellow parents, they will face the London rush hour and not make use of a police escort, which they sometimes do when travelling to engagements.
Prince George will start school in September
A source told the Daily Mail: "They are very hands-on parents and although they acknowledge that it might cause a bit of a buzz to start with, they are hopeful it will soon settle down. It's very important to both of them that George enjoys as normal a childhood as possible, particularly as he settles into a new school, and for them this includes dropping him off at the school gates." Another source said: "Kate wants George – and later Charlotte – to have the same school experience that she did as a child. Both she and William very much agree on this and think George will be very, very happy there."
George and Charlotte's roles at Pippa's wedding revealed
Naturally, when William and Kate have other engagements to attend to, such as royal duties, they can always rely on their Spanish nanny Maria Teresa Turrion Borrallo, who has been with the family since George's birth in 2013. At an engagement at the National Portrait Gallery last month, Kate bumped into fellow parents Richard Found, who runs an architecture and design practice, and his wife Jane Suitor, an art consultant and collector. "We were chatting about Thomas', the school George will be going to," said Mr Found, adding: "We're parents there as well. She just said 'I may see you at the school gates'."
Prince William and Kate will take it in turns to do the school run
Kate reveals Charlotte is "in charge" of big brother George
Of course George's arrival at Thomas's is very exciting to existing parents at the school. One such mum told HELLO!: "All the parents are so excited that Prince George will be joining them although there's quite a lot of talk about the security it will entail. Other than that the biggest concern is whether it's ok to serve a future King Waitrose fish fingers on a playdate or not."