Prince William insists we must 'change the narrative around homelessness'

By MELODY FLETCHER 13:32 05 Oct 2024, updated 15:11 05 Oct 2024

• The teaser clip for Prince William: We Can End Homelessness was shared today
• Read more: Prince William (and his beard) gets a halo as he poses under a lamp on visit to homeless charity

Prince William has insisted it is important to 'change and tackle the narrative around homelessness' in a new clip from his upcoming documentary.

The 22-second video, shared on social media, said the programme - Prince William: We Can End Homelessness - will be 'coming soon' to ITV and ITVX.

The documentary will follow the Prince of Wales during the first year of his Homewards initiative, which aims to tackle all forms of homelessness in the UK.

Asked in the teaser clip where his passion for the issue comes from, William - who was without his new beard - said: 'I think it's really important that we can try and change, and tackle, the narrative around homelessness.

'People live with it, we see it every day in our lives, that's something I want to challenge.'

The programme will follow a senior fire office, who will take a former long-term homeless man to meet Prince William - and share his story.

The late Diana, Princess of Wales, used to take the young royal and his brother to homeless shelters to broaden their horizons after a privileged upbringing.

During the past year, the Homewards teams in six UK locations have been building collaborations between the public, private and third sectors with the aim of laying foundations.

Homewards aims to develop bespoke solutions to homelessness in Newport, three neighbouring Dorset towns - Poole, Bournemouth and Christchurch - Lambeth, Belfast, Aberdeen and Sheffield, that in the future can be replicated in other UK areas.

Last month, Prince William travelled to Aberdeen to persuade the private sector to rent property to more people who have been homeless, saying there are a 'wealth of people out there who want to help, but don't know how'.

Talking about his Homewards initiative to eradicate homelessness in six key areas of the country, the heir to the throne said he wanted to convince private landlords and businesses that it was not too risky.  

Speaking to people who have personally struggled with homelessness, addiction, mental health issues and more, he also said he wants to empower 'those who are homeless to realise their life matters'.

'When you're at your lowest ebb, you believe - quite understandably - that people don't care and there's nowhere to go,' he said, of the importance of removing stigma.

But, he continued: 'There's hope, definitely. We've got to start changing the narrative.'

The prince flew to Aberdeen via a slightly delayed commercial airline, and joked he had brought some good weather with him.

His first of two engagements was at the office of Shelter Scotland, where he spoke to staff and service users.

Hearing that there is a lot of 'unsuitable accommodation', which either does not meet acceptable standards of living or involves long-term sofa surfing, he said: 'There's pressure everywhere, isn't there?'

The prince told staff he hoped his Homewards project would help bring more awareness to the issue of hidden homelessness, the importance of early intervention to stop people becoming homeless in the first place, and a 'shift from management to prevention'.

'You guys do all of the hard work,' he said. 'But who is supporting you? I want Homewards to be that, to elevate your work and support you.

'We're trying to change the narrative to 'this [homelessness] is happening, and we move with it' rather than something no-one understands or talks about.'