Princess of Wales releases baby image of her in new campaign to help young children

Kate says Shaping Us initiative is about helping and 'reprioritising family life'

The Princess of Wales as a baby with her father Michael Middleton. The Middleton Family.

The Princess of Wales has shared a family photograph of her as a baby to help promote her new initiative to help young children.

The image shows her as a smiling baby reaching up to grab her father's face. The words “faces are a baby's best toy” come with the image.

The Shaping Up campaign launched by Kate, Princess of Wales, is about “shaping our society” and creating a “more nurturing world”, she said.

She said young children growing up with the “right emotional support” in a rich environment is more important than the latest toys.

The princess launched Shaping Us on Tuesday, an ambitious campaign she has since described as her “life's work”, in which she aims to raise the profile of the crucial period of a child's development, from pregnancy to the age of five.

In a series of tweets, which she signed off with her name's initial, C, read: “This weekend, we'd love for you all to spend time with your friends, families, colleagues and communities talking about your early childhoods and how they've shaped your lives.

“I hope you'll also consider joining me in sharing a picture of yourselves before your fifth birthday to help with those conversations and to share some smiles and memories too.”

Speaking to radio presenter Roman Kemp, the Princess of Wales said highlighting the importance of early childhood was not about putting “extra pressure” on parents, but saying they needed “help reprioritising family life”.

She has said her early years campaign goes beyond “raising kids” and is also about “shaping our society” and creating a “more nurturing world”.

“The relationships in a family or that are surrounding a child is so important,” she said.

“The environment in which you bring up a child is as important, as well as the experiences that you engage them with.

“It's not about the number of toys that they've got or the number of trips that you go on with them. It's just making sure that they have got the right emotional support around them, that comes from the adults in their lives.”

The Princess of Wales's comments were made in a video last month

“This isn't just about raising kids. It's about shaping our futures, shaping our society, creating a happier, healthier, more nurturing world for us all to live in,” she said

She also agreed with the suggestion that as a mother, the issue of early years was “something that you wanted to learn for you, as well as putting it out there”.

When Kemp commented on families “struggling” with raising children and the cost-of-living crisis, the princess replied: “The pressures that we all face are different.

“Whilst raising the importance of early childhood, this isn't about putting extra pressure on families.

“It's actually saying they need the support and help reprioritising family life, home life, and all that it takes really in raising children today — because it is tough.”

The campaign has the support of a number of celebrities, including rapper Professor Green, presenter Fearne Cotton, former Saturdays singer Rochelle Humes and Lionesses' captain Leah Williamson.