Prince George will be dusting off his backpack when he heads to a new school in September. Prince William and Kate Middleton announced on Friday that their three-year-old son will be attending Thomas’s London Day School in Battersea. “The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have announced that Prince George will attend Thomas's Battersea School in London from September 2017,” a statement released by Kensington Palace read.
The co-ed school in south London educates 540 boys and girls students between the ages of four and 13. The institution, whose most important rule is to “Be Kind,” offers a broad curriculum with music, physical education, French, art and more. Tuition per term costs over $7,000. Ahead of William and Kate’s announcement, the school’s principals, Ben and Tobyn Thomas, informed parents of students about Thomas’s future royal pupil. “We are delighted to let you know that [the Duke and Duchess] have chosen Thomas's and that from September Prince George will be a pupil at Thomas's Battersea,” the letter said. “This is clearly a significant moment for their family and most certainly for Thomas's. Like so many parents, the Duke and Duchess have put a great deal of thought into the choice of their eldest child's first ‘big school.’"
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"We are honoured that the aims and values of Thomas's reflect those that Their Royal Highnesses would like for Prince George's education. We are deeply conscious of the trust that they, like all Thomas's parents, are placing in us and we hope very much to live up to their expectations,” the principals continued. “The Duke and Duchess have made it clear that they do not wish Prince George's attendance at Thomas's to change its aims, values or ethos in any way. They would like, as far as is possible, for him to enjoy the same education that all of our pupils receive and for them to join the school community as all of our new parents do.”
A spokesman for Kensington Palace said: "Their Royal Highnesses are delighted to have found a school where they are confident George will have a happy and successful start to his education." Thomas's Day School places great emphasis on a set of core values, which includes kindness, courtesy, confidence, humility and learning to be givers, not takers. Former pupils of Prince George's future school include model Cara Delevingne and singer Florence Welch.
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George's new school is different from where his father and uncle Prince Harry attended during their early education. The young Princes spent their time at the Wetherby School which is a stone's throw from Kensington Palace in Notting Hill. For William and Kate, Thomas's will be about a 30 minute drive for them daily.