'Faces are a baby's best toy': Princess of Wales shares childhood photo for early years campaign

Kate posted the picture on Twitter. Credit: The Middleton Family

The Princess of Wales has shared a photo from her childhood as part of a campaign to raise awareness of the role our early years play in shaping the rest of our lives.

The image shows Kate as a baby reaching out to grab her father's face, and kickstarts the launch of a photo sharing push for Shaping Us.

As part of the campaign, people are encouraged to share their own pictures from before their fifth birthday, and think about how their early years shaped them as adults today.

In a series of Tweets posted on the Prince and Princess of Wales' official Twitter account, Kate said: "Faces are a baby's best toy."

"On Tuesday we launched #ShapingUs to raise awareness of the vital role our early years play in shaping the rest of our lives.

"This weekend, we'd love for you all to spend time with your friends, families, colleagues and communities talking about your early childhoods and how they've shaped your lives.

"I hope you'll also consider joining me in sharing a picture of yourselves before your fifth birthday to help with those conversation and to share some smiles and memories too."

Shaping Us is a long-term campaign from The Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood, which was founded by the Princess in 2021.

The aim is for it to increase public understanding of the importance of the first five years of a child’s life.

Celebrities including Fearne Cotton, Professor Green, Giovanna Fletcher and Jax Jones have all pledged their support for Shaping Us.


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