The royal believes greater focus on early years education is needed to prevent problems in the future (Picture: PA)

The Princess of Wales has called for an overhaul of early years care to make the most of the ‘unique potential’ of early childhood.

Kate said ‘not enough is being done’ currently in a wide-ranging and outspoken intervention, one her strongest to date.

She called for big changes in order to tackle homelessness and addiction further down the line, arguing mental health problems have their root in early life.

Writing in the Daily Telegraph, she vowed to ‘do everything I can’ to ‘secure much greater focus on those first crucial few years’.

She wrote: ‘Over the past 10 years, talking to a wide range of experts about how we deal with societal issues like poor mental and physical health, I have become more and more sure of one thing: if we are going to create a healthier and happier society for future generations, we must start by understanding and acknowledging the unique importance of the first five years of life.

‘Early childhood, from pregnancy to the age of five, fundamentally impacts our whole lives, establishing the core foundations which allow us to go on to thrive as individuals, with one another, as a community and as a society.’

The royal has focussed on mental health and the early years care as her role as a public campaigner has developed.

The Princess of Wales during a visit to the Reading Ukrainian Community Centre to meet displaced families (Picture: PA)

She has become an outspoken advocate on the subject, in much the same way King Charles did over a number of years with environmentalism. 

Kate has previously visited Denmark to learn more about their investment in early childhood development.

She launched The Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood in June 2021, which aims to raise awareness of the importance of early years experiences in shaping society over the long term.

Kate claimed there is growing evidence that rapid brain development in the first five years of life makes that period ‘hugely significant’.

She continued: ‘It is the way we develop through our experiences, relationships and interactions at that very young age that shapes everything from our ability to form relationships and succeed at work, to our mental and physical health as adults.

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‘There are fantastic examples of what can be achieved when we recognise the unique potential of early childhood and build a safe and loving world around a child.

‘But not enough is being done. If we are going to tackle the sorts of complex challenges we face today like homelessness, violence and addiction, which are so often underpinned by poverty and poor mental health, we have to fully appreciate those most preventative years and do everything we can to nurture our children and those who care for them.’

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The Princess of Wales called for a greater focus on the first few year’s of children’s lives to prevent mental health problems down the line.