Someone in the U.K. who's having a mental health crisis and texting Shout, the helpline launched by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, might actually be getting advice from Prince William. The royal recently admitted he's been secretly volunteering and counseling in the crisis hotline.
Kensington Palace confirmed that Prince William has been a counselor at the Shout 8525 hotline since the lockdown. The Duke of Cambridge also revealed this information in a video call with fellow volunteers in May.
He told the volunteers that he's been answering text messages on Shout after he received training from the charity. The service is anonymous on both ends of the line -- users don't know who they are talking to and the volunteers also do not know the actual person having a mental health crisis.
According to The Guardian, Kensington Palace was initially reluctant to reveal if Prince William has been volunteering in the helpline amid concerns that the service would be overloaded with text messages. However, Shout is now prepared to respond to the increasing demand for support due to the coronavirus lockdown.
Shout, the 24/7 text service help facility, has conducted over 300,000 text conversations a year since its launch. The charity said that about 65 percent of the people texting for mental health advice and support are under 25 years old.
Meanwhile, Prince William's wife Kate Middleton has also done her share of touching base with volunteers while in isolation at Anmer Hall. The Duchess of Cambridge recently took part in the "check in and chat" with the Royal Voluntary Service's NHS Volunteer Responders program. Also joining this scheme were royal family members Sophie, the Countess of Wessex, and Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall.
Prince William and Kate have been busy attending to their royal duties, albeit virtually, from their country estate while also spending time with their kids -- Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis. The Cambridges, however, have not stated if they have sent Charlotte back to school this week since some students may now have in-person classes in the U.K.
Princess Charlotte and Prince George attend the Thomas's Battersea school in London. Prince George's classes, however, have not yet restarted its traditional setting thus he's keeping with homeschooling. Sources say that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge might prefer to return to Kensington and let the kids be back in school together, when Prince George's in-person classes will restart.
