Kate Middleton recycles her blue Alexander McQueen suit and pays a touching tribute to her children with her necklace as she visits a Surrey prison

The Princess of Wales has visited a prison in Surrey to discover how prisoners are being supported by a charity to recover from their addictions.

Kate tours HMP High Down ahead of Addiction Awareness Week to hear about the efforts of The Forward Trust, which she supports as a patron.

The theme of this year’s Addiction Awareness Week is ‘Everyone Knows Someone’, which aims to highlight the wide variety of people in society affected by addiction.

The princess will follow a family during a normal visit, starting with the security procedures that must be followed before visitors are allowed to enter the facility, a category C men’s prison and a young offenders’ facility housing around 1,100 inmates.

She will hear about the impact this is having on families and learn about the recent efforts HMP High Down has put into practice to make the experience more positive for children in particular.

Later, inmates working with The Forward Trust will discuss with Kate their experiences and the support they receive from the charity and the prison.

The Forward Trust provides a range of services at HMP High Down, tailored to the needs of the men who live there.

These include The Bridge, an intensive abstinence-based program, Stepping Stones, a low-to-moderate intensity intervention for people whose alcohol or drug use is at harmful or dependent levels, and Family Ties, a course of workshops focused on recovery of healthy communication and trust. between loved ones.

Before Kate leaves, she will visit The Clink, an on-site restaurant that trains prisoners in hospitality, where she will meet former prisoners and Forward Trust alumni.

Here she will speak to those who have worked and volunteered with the charity in prison and the community, and learn how they have been supported to recover from and manage their addictions.

The guests in attendance will celebrate the concept that recovery is possible for anyone struggling with addiction, in preparation for Addiction Awareness Week next month.

The Princess’s experience of working with addiction charities for more than a decade helped lay the foundation for her understanding of the complexities of mental health care and influenced much of her work in the early years.

Early childhood experiences, before the age of five, have been proven to have a significant impact on adult lives, including resilience and the ability to cope with adversity.

Kate tours HMP High Down ahead of Addiction Awareness Week to hear about the efforts of The Forward Trust, which she supports as a patron

Kate opted for her blue Alexander McQueen suit and paid a touching tribute to her children with her necklace

The theme of this year’s Addiction Awareness Week is ‘Everyone Knows Someone’, with the aim of highlighting the wide variety of people in society affected by addiction.

Since 1991, the Forward Trust has been helping people break the destructive cycle of addiction and build positive and productive futures.

The Forward Trust delivers a large and diverse range of addiction, employment and mental health services nationally and believes everyone has the power to make lasting change.

The Princess became a patron of The Forward Trust in June 2021 when the charity merged with Action on Addiction, one of Her Royal Highness’s first patrons in 2012.

HMP High Down is the location for The Clink, a public restaurant run by prisoners in partnership with The Clink Charity. Prisoners study for NVQs in cooking, serving food and cleaning while they work.

They also receive counseling upon their release, including employment and housing support.

The Forward Trust works in 25 UK prisons, helping people tackle everything from substance abuse and mental health to finding work and housing for those leaving prison.

The charity also supports clients to improve their relationships with friends and family, including reconnecting with children.