Prince and Princess of Wales visit Northern Ireland

The Prince and Princess of Wales made a surprise visit to South Belfast on Friday, meeting organisations and young people working together to create pathways to employment, stability, and opportunity for those at risk of homelessness.

Homelessness is not something someone chooses; however, there is a growing number of people and organisations that are doing their best to help demonstrate that homelessness can be made rare, brief and unrepeated.

Prince William has been combatting this issue by co-founding Homewards in June 2023. Alongside The Royal Foundation, a transformative, five-year, locally led programme aims to show how joining forces can reduce the homelessness rate across the United Kingdom.

While there aren’t solid figures for the total number of people left without a permanent home in the UK, the Office for National Statistics notes that an estimated 974 people died while experiencing homelessness in England and Wales in 2025 — 77.1% higher in 2025 than in 2013, increasing from 550.

On Friday, William and Catherine made a surprise visit to Belfast to see how it has implemented Homewards’ New Employment Opportunities Network (NEON). Launched in Northern Ireland in 2025, NEON was the first test of how a locally led, business-led, jobs-first model could help prevent homelessness through employment. Since then, seven employers have recruited 21 young people through the network, made possible by Homewards.

The Baron and Baroness of Carrickfergus, as the couple are known in Northern Ireland, first visited The Commons, a former church on Belfast’s Ormeau Road, which has been transformed into a community centre centred on creativity, care, and connection.

The Prince and Princess met with employers, frontline organisations and young people involved in Homewards’ New Employment Opportunities Network (NEON). Over five years, Homewards has worked with six flagship locations across the UK to provide spaces, tools, and expertise to deliver innovative solutions that prevent and end homelessness.

As word spread of the couple’s unannounced visit, hundreds of members of the public flocked to Ormeau Road to see the Prince and Princess in person. William even took time to join a FaceTime call with the mother of one of those waiting outside The Commons.

Homewards will also raise awareness of the breadth and complexities of homelessness through national campaigns, local storytelling and by placing those with lived experience at the heart of this work.

Kensington Palace says the Prince and Princess of Wales and The Royal Foundation lead with the belief that change is always possible and are committed to building innovative, collaborative and optimistic solutions that deliver positive impact where it matters most.

Together, Their Royal Highnesses and The Royal Foundation can take a long-term view and unite people, ideas, and resources, inspiring action to deliver meaningful change for a better future for individuals, communities, society, and our planet.