TIMES.KY

Cayman Islands, Caribbeanand International News
Wednesday, Jun 04, 2025

Kate launches childhood survey to help under-fives

The Duchess of Cambridge meets children in Birmingham to mark the launch of her "five big questions".

The five-question online survey aims to "spark a national conversation" to help create "lasting change for generations to come", Kensington Palace said.

Catherine is marking its launch with visits to a museum in Birmingham, a nursery in London and a baby sensory class in Cardiff.

The NSPCC said the project would be a "vital source of information".

In the survey, called Five Big Questions, participants are asked for their opinion on what influences development and what period of childhood is most important for children's happiness.

On Tuesday the duchess visited Thinktank, a science museum in Birmingham.

She was shown around an interactive mini city inside the museum and spoke to parents and carers about her survey.


Business as usual

Analysis by Daniela Relph, BBC royal correspondent

It is stating the obvious to say it has been a difficult week for the Royal Family.

But with Harry and Meghan now back in Canada and big decisions made about their future there is a sense of returning to business as usual... at least for now.

For the Duchess of Cambridge that means an even sharper focus on one particular area - the problems of early childhood.

Royal engagements can cover a vast number of areas but for the duchess an increasing amount of her work is targeted at early years.

This new survey will ultimately help provide important data for all those working in the area of early years, and will also inform the kind of work the Duchess of Cambridge gets involved with in the future.

Those who have worked with her in this area say she is totally committed and isn't just a figurehead.

She has built up an expertise and wants to prevent the same problems affecting the same families generation after generation.

On Wednesday morning Catherine will join parents as they drop off their children at a nursery in Southwark, south London, before helping to serve breakfast to the children.

She will attend a baby sensory class at the Ely and Caerau Children's Centre in Cardiff to hear about the support parents receive there.

Catherine and her husband, the Duke of Cambridge, have three children - six-year-old Prince George, four-year-old Princess Charlotte, and 21-month-old Prince Louis.

Princess Charlotte and Prince George both attend the lower school at Thomas's Battersea, while Prince Louis has not yet started nursery.

The Royal Foundation website says Catherine believes "many of society's greatest social and health challenges" could be "mitigated or entirely avoided" if young children are given "the right support".

Kate Stanley, from the NSPCC, says the duchess's survey will "provide fascinating insight into how we think about the early years and it will be a vital source of information for the sector".

Ipsos Mori, which is conducting the survey on behalf of the Royal Foundation, said it was a "fantastic way for the British public to share their views".

The company's Kelly Beaver added: "Whilst many studies have been conducted to generate evidence of the importance of the early years, there is a real lack of evidence to understand whether this is understood by the British public."

The survey will be open until 21 February.


The 'five big questions'

1. What do you believe is most important for children growing up in the UK today to live a happy adult life? Rank from most important to least important:

Good physical and mental health
Good friendships and relationships
Access to opportunities
Access to a good education
2. Which of these statements is closest to your opinion?

It is primarily the responsibility of parents to give children aged 0-5 the best chance of health and happiness
It is primarily the responsibility of others in society to give children aged 0-5 the best chance of health and happiness
It is the shared responsibility of parents and others in society to give children aged 0-5 the best chance of health and happiness

Don't know

3. How much do you agree or disagree with this statement? The mental health and wellbeing of parents and carers has a great impact on the development of their child(ren)

Strongly agree
Tend to agree
Neither agree nor disagree
Tend to disagree
Strongly disagree

4. Which of the following is closest to your opinion of what influences how children develop from the start of pregnancy to age five?

Mostly the traits a child is born with (i.e. nature)
Mostly the experiences of a child in the early years (i.e. nurture)
Both nature and nurture equally
Don't know

5. Which period of a child and young person's life do you think is the most important for health and happiness in adulthood?

Start of pregnancy to five years
5-11 years (primary school)
11-16 years (secondary school)
16-18 years (further education)
18-24 years (young adulthood)
Don't know
All equally important

Newsletter

Related Articles

TIMES.KY
0:00
0:00
Close
Paper straws found to contain long-lasting and potentially toxic chemicals - study
FTX's Bankman-Fried headed for jail after judge revokes bail
Blackrock gets half a trillion dollar deal to rebuild Ukraine
Israel: Unprecedented Civil Disobedience Looms as IDF Reservists Protest Judiciary Reform
America's First New Nuclear Reactor in Nearly Seven Years Begins Operations
Southeast Asia moves closer to economic unity with new regional payments system
Today Hunter Biden’s best friend and business associate, Devon Archer, testified that Joe Biden met in Georgetown with Russian Moscow Mayor's Wife Yelena Baturina who later paid Hunter Biden $3.5 million in so called “consulting fees”
Singapore Carries Out First Execution of a Woman in Two Decades Amid Capital Punishment Debate
Google testing journalism AI. We are doing it already 2 years, and without Google biased propoganda and manipulated censorship
Unlike illegal imigrants coming by boats - US Citizens Will Need Visa To Travel To Europe in 2024
Musk announces Twitter name and logo change to X.com
The politician and the journalist lost control and started fighting on live broadcast.
The future of sports
Unveiling the Black Hole: The Mysterious Fate of EU's Aid to Ukraine
Farewell to a Music Titan: Tony Bennett, Renowned Jazz and Pop Vocalist, Passes Away at 96
Alarming Behavior Among Florida's Sharks Raises Concerns Over Possible Cocaine Exposure
Transgender Exclusion in Miss Italy Stirs Controversy Amidst Changing Global Beauty Pageant Landscape
Joe Biden admitted, in his own words, that he delivered what he promised in exchange for the $10 million bribe he received from the Ukraine Oil Company.
TikTok Takes On Spotify And Apple, Launches Own Music Service
Global Trend: Using Anti-Fake News Laws as Censorship Tools - A Deep Dive into Tunisia's Scenario
Arresting Putin During South African Visit Would Equate to War Declaration, Asserts President Ramaphosa
Hacktivist Collective Anonymous Launches 'Project Disclosure' to Unearth Information on UFOs and ETIs
Typo sends millions of US military emails to Russian ally Mali
Server Arrested For Theft After Refusing To Pay A Table's $100 Restaurant Bill When They Dined & Dashed
The Changing Face of Europe: How Mass Migration is Reshaping the Political Landscape
China Urges EU to Clarify Strategic Partnership Amid Trade Tensions
Europe is boiling: Extreme Weather Conditions Prevail Across the Continent
The Last Pour: Anchor Brewing, America's Pioneer Craft Brewer, Closes After 127 Years
Democracy not: EU's Digital Commissioner Considers Shutting Down Social Media Platforms Amid Social Unrest
Sarah Silverman and Renowned Authors Lodge Copyright Infringement Case Against OpenAI and Meta
Italian Court's Controversial Ruling on Sexual Harassment Ignites Uproar
Why Do Tech Executives Support Kennedy Jr.?
The New York Times Announces Closure of its Sports Section in Favor of The Athletic
BBC Anchor Huw Edwards Hospitalized Amid Child Sex Abuse Allegations, Family Confirms
Florida Attorney General requests Meta CEO's testimony on company's platforms' alleged facilitation of illicit activities
The Distorted Mirror of actual approval ratings: Examining the True Threat to Democracy Beyond the Persona of Putin
40,000 child slaves in Congo are forced to work in cobalt mines so we can drive electric cars.
BBC Personalities Rebuke Accusations Amidst Scandal Involving Teen Exploitation
A Swift Disappointment: Why Is Taylor Swift Bypassing Canada on Her Global Tour?
Historic Moment: Edgars Rinkevics, EU's First Openly Gay Head of State, Takes Office as Latvia's President
Bye bye democracy, human rights, freedom: French Cops Can Now Secretly Activate Phone Cameras, Microphones And GPS To Spy On Citizens
The Poor Man With Money, Mark Zuckerberg, Unveils Twitter Replica with Heavy-Handed Censorship: A New Low in Innovation?
Unilever Plummets in a $2.5 Billion Free Fall, to begin with: A Reckoning for Misuse of Corporate Power Against National Interest
Beyond the Blame Game: The Need for Nuanced Perspectives on America's Complex Reality
Twitter Targets Meta: A Tangle of Trade Secrets and Copycat Culture
The Double-Edged Sword of AI: AI is linked to layoffs in industry that created it
US Sanctions on China's Chip Industry Backfire, Prompting Self-Inflicted Blowback
Meta Copy Twitter with New App, Threads
The New French Revolution
BlackRock Bitcoin ETF Application Refiled, Naming Coinbase as ‘Surveillance-Sharing’ Partner
×