Kate Middleton facing 'mum guilt' struggle once again as Prince George, Charlotte and Louis return to school

Navigating the ups and downs of parenthood is a notorious rollercoaster experience and the Princess of Wales will likely be experiencing some bittersweet feelings now that the summer holidays are over. Prince George, Charlotte and Louis are back at school for the autumn term and Kate will soon resume public engagements.

This will mean she has to once again strike a balance between her royal role and her responsibilities as a mum. The Princess is known for being a hands-on parent and in the past she opened up about how school time factored into her "Mum Guilt".

Getting candid on Giovanna Fletcher’s Happy Mum, Happy Baby podcast in 2020, Kate confessed to feeling it, adding that "anyone who doesn’t as a mother is actually lying". She then described the moment her elder children found out she wouldn’t be taking them to school that day.

"Even this morning, George and Charlotte were like, ‘Mummy, how could you possibly not be dropping us off at school this morning?’ No, it’s a constant challenge," she declared.

Both her and Prince William are known to do school drop-offs and pic-ups whenever they can, but as full time working royals it’s almost inevitable that there’ll be a few days they can’t be there themselves. On these occasions it’s possible that Kate’s parents Carole and Michael Middleton, who live not far away from Adelaide Cottage, could step in to help out.

After a summer spent enjoying precious time together, the start of the autumn term marks the return of routine in the Wales household. If the Princess felt mum guilt in the past about not always being able to drop her kids at school, it’s surely likely that she still experiences moments like this now they’re older too.

Kate’s duties as a royal have also increased as she’s become more senior, meaning that the juggle of work and motherhood very much continues. During her podcast appearance, the Princess of Wales divulged how she goes about handling her feelings of guilt - and the advice she received from a "very wise man".

"The more people you have around your children who are safe and loving and caring, the better," she said, adding that this was a "real weight" off her shoulders. It made her see that "actually it's not totally [her] responsibility to do everything".

The royal continued, “You know we all have good days, bad days - and you can dilute that with others who aren't on that particular day struggling.”

Having a good support system both personally and professionally seems to be something she’s totally in favour of and Kate and Prince William might both be drawing on theirs even more over the coming months. Not only are Prince George, Charlotte and Louis now back at school but we now know that the family will be making a big change before the end of 2025.

A Kensington Palace spokesperson confirmed last month that the Waleses are going to be moving house. Their new “forever home” is rumoured to be Forest Lodge in Windsor, which is conveniently close to both Windsor Castle, Lambrook school and the Middletons’ family home.