The Prince of Wales has hosted a crucial summit in Bournemouth today as representatives from five nations gathered to examine his flagship initiative tackling youth homelessness.
The future King established the Homewards project in 2023 with an ambitious goal of creating a framework to eliminate homelessness entirely, with the aim of "making it rare, brief and unrepeated".
The programme operates across six locations throughout the UK, including Newport, Lambeth, Belfast, Aberdeen, Sheffield and the combined Dorset area of Bournemouth, Poole and Christchurch, known as BCP.
Each site develops tailored approaches to address local homelessness challenges.
Prince William met with international delegates in Bournemouth
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The prince has spoken previously about how childhood visits to shelters alongside his late mother Diana left a profound impression that continues to drive his commitment to this cause.
Delegates from Australia, Canada, Belgium, the Netherlands and Finland made the journey to observe the BCP operation, which has emerged as a leading example among the charity's centres.
The prince greeted the visiting representatives at Bournemouth Pier, where the group included figures from charitable organisations, educational institutions and local government bodies.
Together they met with leaders responsible for delivering services in the area.
The delegation subsequently participated in a meeting of the recently established BCP Youth Homelessness Board.
This session demonstrated how various sectors collaborate to intervene before young people face crisis situations.
Organisers intend to explore how these approaches might be expanded both nationally and in the delegates' respective countries.
Tackling homelessness has been one of Prince William's leading passions
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Melanie Redman, president of A Way Home Canada, said: "We are here to learn about the success of other models and systems that are happening here in Bournemouth."
She added: "For it's fantastic to see the prince throw his support behind something so important because young people deserve better outcomes, they deserve to thrive, and to see the Royal Foundation so involved in this and at such a personal level is truly exciting and will hopefully ignite more efforts in Canada."
Frances Beecher, chairwoman of the BCP Council's Youth Homelessness Board, described William as "totally engaged" following their conversation.
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"I think homelessness is very important to him and dear to his heart," she said.
Ms Beecher emphasised that the royal backing enables partners to unite around systemic change, ensuring young people do not slip through gaps in provision.
Theo, a young member of Homewards' National Co-Production Group who draws on personal experience to shape the charity's direction, also spoke with the prince.
"He is very engaged, he was very keen to hear how the project is going and saying how fundamental and key lived experience is and how he can't do the project by himself and how he needs all of our support and to work together," Theo said.
The Prince of Wales met spent some time with onlookers after the meeting
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"It was amazing, he was very easy to talk to and welcoming."
As William departed from the pier, a sizeable crowd had assembled to bid him farewell.
The prince paused briefly to pose for a selfie with a family among the gathered well-wishers.
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