Yesterday, The Duchess of Cambridge officially opened the new headquarters of the Place2Be charity, of which she is patron, at 175 St. John Street in London. Place2Be offers support to schools and community groups to assist them with social issues, ranging from bullying, bereavement, domestic violence, family breakdown, neglect and trauma.
The new charity headquarters has been designed as a place to provide state-of-the-art training facilities to enable Place2Be to train more counsellors, teachers and school leaders. The headquarters will also acts as a training facility to enable the organisation to train more of those who can support children in need, and provide a new home to the charity’s research and evaluation teams.
The Duchess, in a blue lace dress, met leaders of the charity and was told about the work of Place2Be. The mental health of children is a key area of focus for the Duchess, and Place2Be is one of the causes she supports on a regular basis.
On Tuesday, she visited a primary school supported by Family Links, which encourages emotional well-being.
duchess kate learnt how the children benefit from being mentally healthy and supported as she opened the new place2be headquarters (kensington palace)
During the visit, Catherine took part in a discussion with mental health professionals who have completed one of Place2Be’s accredited child counselling qualifications, as well as School Leaders who have participated in the charity’s Mental Health Champions programme.
Kate also met pupils at a local primary school, Albion school, who are benefiting from working with Place2Be counsellors.
The royal guest told a group of staff members: “We know that schools have a vital role to play in creating an emotionally healthy culture for children.”
the duchess of cambridge chats to staff at the new place2be hq (kensington palace)
“Schools, however, cannot and should not have to manage all this alone. School leaders and teachers need expert guidance and training to develop their own approaches to supporting children’s mental wellbeing.”
“They also need access to a pool of experienced, well-trained mental health professionals, who can step in when things are more complex or serious.”
“As its patron, I am incredibly proud of the contribution that Place2Be is making towards exactly this.”
“They are training and guiding thousands of counsellors, and many hundreds of school leaders, teachers and staff, based on the evidence and experience gathered from their frontline work.”
Our new building will become a hub for excellence in children’s mental health, driving progress through evidence-based practice, professional development and research. #Place2BeOpening pic.twitter.com/5pmnLvGhAC
— Place2Be (@Place2Be) March 7, 2018
Kate also joined a roundtable with members of Place2Be’s Research and Evaluation team, and the independent Research Advisory Group to discuss how the charity uses research to improve its work, and she unveiled a plaque to officially open the new headquarters.
