Prince William and Kate champion ‘controlled parenting’ as they shield children from ‘pressure’

Prince William and wife Kate Middleton continue to adopt a unusual approach to parenting in order to protect their children – with one royal expert even describing their choice as ‘enlightened’

Raising three children isn’t always easy, and it’s even harder when you spend most of your life in the public spotlight as a working royal.

Yet even despite the demands placed upon them and the expectation to appear on the global stage, Prince William and Kate, Princess of Wales have continued to take a no-nonsense approach to raising Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis.

With the children’s destiny laid out before them to one day step fully into the spotlight, for now, the couple have opted to try and carefully balance the amount of time their children are exposed to the public, in order to maintain a quiet, and relatively normal childhood.

In order to do this, the couple have often defied royal tradition and opted to do much of their parenting themselves, instead of relying on outside staff such as tutors and nannies. Making a conscious point of getting stuck into a host of family activities, such as baking, gardening and even playing sport – it’s easy to see that William and Kate are fully committed to giving their children the best life they possibly can – even if it does differ from that of other children.

One of the ways the royals have helped to keep their children with their feet firmly on the ground, is by encouraging them to speak openly about their mental health and feelings
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Sharing her insight into the couple’s unique parenting style, former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond told OK!: “They are hands-on parents in a way neither Charles and Diana, nor the late Queen and Prince Philip ever were. From the start they have cared for their children themselves as much as possible with minimal outside help.”

“This is an unusual and enlightened decision by the couple: you can’t undo the destiny you were born into, but you can make life more of a family affair than an upbringing in palaces and castles would allow.”

Yet it isn’t just down to the efforts of William and Kate however, as Kate’s own grandparents Carole and Michael Middleton have also played a key role in “grounding” the children and helping them to experience a regular childhood with a “normalising influence.”

In addition to trying to limit their exposure to the public eye, Kate and William have also championed the importance of discussing their feelings and mental health, which continues to greatly benefit the young royals,.

Michael Middleton (pictured here with Prince George) and his wife Carole have been instrumental in helping to offer the royal children a ‘normalised’ childhood
The royals have also championed the importance of family time, with plenty of activities enjoyed together, be it watching and playing sport – or even baking

“They have adopted modern parenting techniques of allowing children to express themselves, to voice their worries and emotions and to understand when their friends are feeling angry or frustrated or unhappy,” Jennie says. “To be empathetic. They have shown them and talked to them about people who are less privileged and encouraged them to learn how helping others makes them feel better too.

“They have strictly controlled the children’s exposure to the pressures of public life which has bought them a good measure of privacy. They run a fun household, full of noise and bustle, music and dancing where it sounds as if the kids often rule the roost, as in most happy families.”