Prince William vows to ‘end homelessness’ and plans to build social housing in the Duchy of Cornwall

Prince William has revealed his lifelong ambition to end homelessness in the UK, saying he will build social housing on his private estate, the Duchy of Cornwall, which he inherited from his father the king.

William, 40, spoke in his first interview since becoming the Prince of Wales, using it to explain his determination to ‘make a difference…that doesn’t set people who are homeless up for another fall’.

Stretching from Cornwall to Kent, the 130,000 acre Duchy of Cornwall includes estates in Newquay and Dorchester that consist of a mix of private and some affordable housing.

Being on demand Sunday Times interview whether there are any plans for affordable housing on Duchy lands, William said: ‘Absolutely. Public housing. You’ll see that when it’s done. I’m not a policy expert, but I push it where I can.’

Described by the paper as a ‘curveball’ that aides weren’t expecting, William indicated he will ‘start small’ with the housing and if the plan performs well will look at increasing the amount available.

Poundbury was developed on land belonging to the Duchy of Cornwall, a royal estate administered by the Prince of Wales. It consists of a mix of private and affordable housing (file image)

William said he often asks Princes George and Louis and Princess Charlotte on school trips around London why they think people sleep on the street (file image)

William said, “It’s all right to make grand gestures, but it’s no use if… there’s no future in it.”

Poundbury, a Dorset estate that is part of the Royal Family’s more than £1bn property portfolio, is 35 per cent affordable housing and private homes.

Under the framework of national land use planning policies, major developments, including housing, should require 10 percent affordable housing availability.

The prince expressed his frustration with the government, municipalities and charities that are merely ‘managing’ the homelessness crisis rather than ‘preventing’ it.

Now he’s teasing what he calls a “really big project” coming from the Royal Foundation, which he co-heads with the Princess of Wales.

He said he hopes the project, which is being kept secret until later this month, will have a “tangible effect” in improving living conditions.

William was 11 years old when his mother, the late Princess Diana, took him and Prince Harry to a homeless shelter and is now a patron of the Passage, the charity that ran it.

Following in his mother’s footsteps, he became a patron of another charity, Centrepoint, in 2005, and recently spoke at a 33-flat affordable youth housing project funded by the group.

Diana, Princess of Wales visiting homeless charity The Passage with her sons, (then) Prince Harry (2nd left) and Prince William (2nd right) in the early 1990s

The charity’s survey last year found that the number of 16- to 24-year-olds who were homeless or at risk of becoming homeless was 122,000.

This figure, obtained through freedom of information requests to all councils, has risen since Centrepoint’s first request five years ago when it was 110,000, and will rise again this year.

As a senior royal and with the eyes of the world constantly on him, the prince was asked what he personally does to help people sleeping on the street.

‘I don’t like to give money. I tend to buy them a drink, food, something like that. I notice that when I walk around or drive by and see other people doing it [give money], people don’t even look at it. How many people stop and talk to someone who is homeless? Very few of us.

‘In my work I meet these people, I hear the stories, I feel it, I see it. That is very important to me – and I have heard from them myself.

‘They have become invisible. It’s really important for society to recognize that someone is out there and they’re struggling. It shouldn’t be happening, but it is. You can not ignore it.’

William is a patron of the Centrepoint charity and recently spoke at an affordable housing project of 33 apartments for young people funded by the group

The prince also revealed that he plans to take his children to a homeless shelter and that he is trying to ensure that his children are exposed to the realities faced by tens of thousands across the country.

He said that during the school trip around London, he often asks Princes George and Louis and Princess Charlotte what they see and why they think people sleep badly.

‘She [will] growing up knowing that actually, you know what, some of us are very lucky, some of us need a little help, some of us need to do more where we can to help others improve their lives.”