The Princess of Wales has released a statement highlighting the importance of children’s hospices, following her appearance at Garter Day in Windsor.
Princess Catherine, 44, used the message to draw attention to the role hospices play in supporting children and families, marking Children’s Hospice Week, the only week of the year dedicated to raising awareness of children’s hospice services across the UK, led by the charity Together for Short Lives.
The Princess serves as patron of two children’s hospices, East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices and Tŷ Hafan Children’s Hospice in South Wales, a cause she has long been passionate about. She invited members of the public to join her in celebrating the work of hospices during the dedicated week.
“Every childhood deserves to be rich in joy, love, and shared memories,” she wrote. “As Patron of East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices and Tŷ Hafan Children’s Hospice, I have been privileged to see first-hand how children’s hospices make this possible for babies, children and young people living with serious illness.”
She described hospices as nurturing spaces where children are able to simply be children.
“Children’s hospices are joyful and nurturing environments where children can simply be children; to play, explore, express themselves and connect with others,” she said, adding that for families, hospices provide “a compassionate and restorative space to breathe, be together, and find strength in a community that understands their journey.”
The Princess emphasized the depth and continuity of care hospices provide, noting that dedicated professionals support families “often over many years, throughout a young person’s life and, when needed, into death and bereavement.”
She described hospices as places that protect connection between children and their families, between families and their wider communities, between staff and the people they support, and within a child’s own sense of self.
She also addressed a common misconception that can prevent families from seeking support.
“When we shine a light on the remarkable, yet often unseen, work the hospices do to help children and their families live as fully as possible, we can break down one of the greatest barriers families often face: the fear that reaching out means giving up hope, or that care only begins at the very end,” she wrote.
The Princess stressed that joy and connection remain possible even amid serious illness.
“Even in the most challenging circumstances, when children are surrounded by attuned care, opportunities for expression, and environments that nurture their whole selves, they can experience joy, belonging and the freedom to be who they are,” she said.
“These extraordinary places remind us that even in the face of serious illness, childhood remains a time of creativity, connection and possibility.”
She closed her statement by encouraging the public to take part in the week’s events.
“This Children’s Hospice Week, I hope you will join me in celebrating the countless ways children’s hospices make every moment count for the children and families they support, and in recognising the profound, life-changing impact of the culture of care they are working to create.”
