#place2be

The Princess of Wales + Children's Mental Health Week (2015-Present)

Children's Mental Health Week is an initiative started by Place2Be in 2016, of which the Princess has been patron since 2013. It takes place in the first week of February and often includes a theme to improve children's mental health.

2015 marked the start of Place2Be's Children's Mental Health Week. The then Duchess of Cambridge released a video message to raise awareness for the importance of mental health and wellbeing of young children.

In 2016, the then Duchess of Cambridge interviewed children about their emotional experiences and their understanding of their mental wellbeing and challenges.

In 2017, the then Duke and Duchess of Cambridge visited Place2Be's Big Assembly hosted at Mitchell Brook Primary School. The Duchess gave a speech at the assembly highlighting the importance of kindness.

In 2018, the Duchess of Cambridge once again released a video message highlighting the importance of the early years. The Duchess advocated for adults to give children the best possible support for their wellbeing.

2019 saw the Duchess of Cambridge visited two schools to see how they supported their students' mental health: Lavender Primary School and Alperton Community School in London. The theme that year was "Healthy: Inside and Out" and connected physical and mental health.

In 2020, the Duchess of Cambridge wrote a message to mark the start of Children's Mental Health Week. The letter encouraged children to brave through small actions and share their worries and emotional concerns. It fit the theme of "Find your Brave" that year.

For Children's Mental Health Week in 2021, the Duchess of Cambridge released two videos. One video saw the Duchess of Cambridge during a zoom chat with staff at Ribbon Academy, Murton, County Durham to hear how families and children are being supported through the pandemic. The other was a selfie video in which the Princess encouraged children and adults alike to embrace things that help them express and feel about themselves.

In 2022, the Duchess of Cambridge marked the week by reading a bedtime story for CBeebies. She read the book The Owl Who Was Afraid of the Dark, by Jill Tomlinson. She read the book as it fit the theme that year of "Growing Together."

In 2023, the Princess of Wales released another video to mark the week. In the video, the Princess asked students from St. John’s Church of England Primary School in Bethnal Green to talk about the importance of friendship and had them explain a color-coded emotions chart. Her focus was to teach children how to communicate their emotions.

The Princess of Wales did not mark the week in 2024 and 2025 due to her health challenges and recovery.

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Watched this at last. Such a lovely interview by Elizabeth. I love Jacob’s responses & how he asks questions & listens too. Thank you Jacob. 💓

The Duchess of Cambridge, Patron of Place2Be, speaks with teachers from Ribbon Academy in County Durham (on February 2nd 2021) on Children's Mental Health Week, about the work they have been doing during the pandemic to support children and their families, and thanked them for their efforts, at Sandringham House in Norfolk, England -February 4th 2021.