20-05-2025
Kate Middleton and Prince William's 'unusual' parenting decision that follows 'Middleton model'
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission.
Every parent must find their own way of doing things, and when it comes to the Prince and Princess of Wales, one royal expert remarked on their "unusual" decision that separates them from the likes of Princess Diana, King Charles and even the late Queen Elizabeth II.
Realizing they "can't undo destiny," Prince William and Kate Middleton's "unusual and enlightened" decision saw them become incredibly "hands-on" with Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.
And this isn't surprising, considering the future King and Queen broke with tradition to take their children out of London and moved to Adelaide Cottage in Windsor for more freedom and private time.
The BBC's former royal correspondent Jennie Bond shared her thoughts with OK!, suggesting it's Kate's connection to her own family and her countryside upbringing that makes all the difference in "grounding" George, Charlotte and Louis.
Catherine, the Princess of Wales: A Revelatory Biography of the Future Queen by Robert Jobson | Was $29.95, Now $11.45 at Amazon
This biography of the Princess of Wales explores how she became the woman she is today. Author Robert Jobson has spoken to sources on and off the record in the Royal Household and reflects on her beginnings and role as the future Queen Deal
"They are hands-on parents in a way neither Charles and Diana, nor the late Queen and Prince Philip ever were," Jennie claimed, reflecting on other royal parenting approaches. "From the start they have cared for their children themselves as much as possible with minimal outside help."
Calling this an "unusual and enlightened decision", Jennie suggests their choice came after they realized they "can't undo the destiny you were born into" Instead, you can "make life more of a family affair than an upbringing in palaces and castles would allow".
Examples of this "hands-on" approach includes the relatable yet surprising place one might find the Princess of Wales hanging out with her children, and the future King and Queen doing the school run themselves. This is quite different to King Charles and Princess Anne's experience growing up in the Royal Family. Princess Margaret's Lady-in-Waiting, Lady Anne Glenconner, previously explained to OK! that Queen Elizabeth was away a lot due to the intense demands of her job.
"[King] Charles and Princess Anne were so small when she became Queen and she just had so much to do," Lady Glenconner alleged, before later adding, "It was rather like she had two families, because when she had Andrew and Edward she was able to spend much more time with them."
Sharing how her own childhood might have influenced her parenting, Kate has previously told Giovanna Fletcher's Happy Mum, Happy Baby podcast about her family holidays as a child and how her parents were there cheering her on at every sports match. This parenting style is something she and Prince William have reportedly been emulating and Jennie believes that Carole and Michael Middleton have a "normalizing influence" on their grandchildren's lives.
She said, "Don't underestimate the normalizing influence of having a happy, ordinary couple as grandparents. Carole and Michael Middleton remain an integral part of the extended family unit as they come from ordinary backgrounds and offer a grounding for the children."
The Middletons are incredibly close to the Wales family and royal expert Duncan Larcombe once suggested that Prince William was raised "very different[ly]" and wants to follow their example with his own children.
"William has based his children's upbringing on the Middleton model - three children, affluent, but hardworking parents and lots of love in the house,' he alleged to OK!. 'By the time Kate was in her early twenties, she counted her mother and father on the list of her best friends."
"That's what William and Kate are aspiring to with their children, but they also have to drip-feed George, and to some extent Charlotte and Louis, into the public domain."
