Inside William and Kate’s year of change as 2026 marks pivotal moment in royals’ lives

As 2026 dawns, it couldn’t be more different to the start of 2025 for the Prince and Princess of Wales – and it seems there is more change on the horizon for them in the next 12 months

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The Prince and Princess of Wales (Image: Samir Hussein/WireImage)

What a difference a year makes – just ask the Prince and Princess of Wales as they look ahead to 2026. Just 12 months ago, William and Kate were coming to the end of a ‘brutal’ period, which had seen them contend with Kate’s cancer diagnosis, her subsequent chemotherapy treatment, as well as support the King through his cancer journey.

But as a brand new year dawns, 2026 is shaping up to be very different for the Wales family – both at work and at home. Kate is now thankfully in remission – something she revealed in early 2025 – they’ve just moved to their new Forest Lodge home, they are fast approaching their milestone 15th wedding anniversary and their oldest child, Prince George, is soon to be a teenager.

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The couple has had a much different 2025 compared to last year (Image: POOL/AFP via Getty Images)

And even though the new year ahead will no doubt see them continue to champion the causes important to them – the couple has hinted of a bold new direction ahead. One of the biggest challenges for the Royal Family – not least future King and Queen William and Kate – is how to keep the monarchy relevant in the 21st century.

It’s clearly something that has played on the couple’s mind with William even admitting of his desire for change in an unprecedented chat with Eugene Levy in a recent episode of his show, The Reluctant Traveller. And former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond exclusively tells the Mirror that keeping the monarchy relevant and laying the foundations for the future in the Prince and Princess of Wales roles is key.

She explains: “The prospect of becoming King and Queen in the foreseeable future must always be with them. And it must be rather daunting. However, I think they are intent at the moment on making their roles as Prince and Princess of Wales as effective as possible. They both have causes and campaigns that they care about deeply and that still require their help.

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Prince George with his parents earlier this year (Image: AP)

“And I think those causes – many to do with social issues like homelessness, mental health and education – will help keep the monarchy relevant. And that’s something William has earmarked as one of his most important functions. William and Catherine will, of course, hope for the King’s approval. But they are very much their own people and ultimately they will stick by the decisions they themselves make.”

One part of their new direction for the future appears to be their bold new way of using social media – using it to post more personal updates, pictures and clips than ever before. At the start of 2025, William posted an incredibly rare message for his wife, declaring how proud he was of her and how much he loved her, praising her remarkable strength.

Just weeks later, Kate also used social media to announce she was in remission from cancer after an emotional visit to the Royal Marsden Hospital in London, where she had received her cancer treatment. As always, this year, the couple has shared personal photos of George, Charlotte and Louis on their birthdays, but this time with the addition of sweet behind-the-scenes footage of their snaps being taken.

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The Princess of Wales joined a school trip to the National Portrait Gallery in April(Image: Getty Images)

In October, to mark World Mental Health Day, William appeared in an emotional video where he broke down in tears speaking to a mum whose husband took his own life after the tragic death of their young son. Meanwhile, Kate also turned content creator this year with her Mother Nature series of videos, celebrating the power of the great outdoors – and giving her personal reflections on how spending time in nature makes her feel.

And in what has become somewhat of a new social media tradition, William and Kate have taken to posting formal snaps on social media before state banquets, dressed up in their finery. In fact, the snap posted on Instagram before the Windsor Castle banquet in honour of Donald Trump during the US state visit to the UK, where Kate wore a show-stopping gold Philippa Lepley gown garnered over 1.3million likes.

Jennie added: “I think they will continue with their social media strategy because they know that it has a greater reach, particularly amongst young people, than many other forms of communication these days.” And while William and Kate continue with their brave new direction at work, there will also be a seismic shift in their home life.

In recent years, the couple has formed a tight-knit bubble with their children who all attend the same school, Lambrook, which is close to their Windsor home. There, the trio are day pupils and with William and Kate seemingly always on hand to ferry them to after-school activities and support them in their sports matches.

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A tearful Prince William discussing suicide prevention in a video released to mark World Mental Heath Day (Image: Kensington Palace)

But big change is on the horizon as George turns 13 in July and he will go onto secondary education at a brand new school in September – and could possibly even board. The couple are keeping their cards close to their chest as to which school he will attend, with top picks believed to include his father’s former school Eton and the school his mum went to, Marlborough College. Previously, George and his parents had been spotted visiting Eton College, while Marlborough College is considered one of the UK’s top boarding schools, catering for both boys and girls.

And this huge change could prove to be one of the biggest pivotal changes of the next 12 months, according to Jennie. She added: “I think the biggest event for them as a family is that they will suddenly have a teenager in their midst. And that, as many parents know, can bring a whole new bunch of challenges. George will be turning 13 in July, and starting a new chapter in his life as he moves to secondary school – and possibly away from home. And that’s going to take a fair bit of readjustment for them all.”

Over the years, especially since Kate’s cancer diagnosis, the prince and princess have made clear that they will always put their family first, prioritising their children and ring-fencing family time. No greater of example of this over the past 12 months was when William and Kate skipped the traditional Easter Sunday church service in Windsor to prioritise family time together – all with the blessing of the King.

Meanwhile for William, recent months have also seen him and his father faced with the dilemma of how to handle the scandal that engulfed the former prince Andrew. The disgraced former Duke of York has now been stripped of all of his titles following more revelations over his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein – with William fully supporting the drastic move taken by the King.