The Kate Middleton Effect has stroked again and this time its not in the multi-billion dollar world of the fashion – but the Early Years. Princess of Wale, Kate Middleton’s Early Years advocacy drives transformative workplace policies, with Deloitte UK leading the charge by offering 26 weeks of fully paid parental leave. The Deloitte announcement is one of the milestone wins for the Princess of Wales’ legacy work.
In a groundbreaking move, Deloitte UK, a leader among the Big Four firms, has revolutionized its parental leave policy, offering 26 weeks of fully paid family leave to all new parents, regardless of gender, effective January 1, 2025. This policy, inspired by Princess of Wlaes’ Early Years initiative through the Royal Foundation’s Business Taskforce for Early Childhood, marks a significant step toward workplace equality and support for working parents. Here’s how Kate’s vision is reshaping corporate culture and why it matters for families and businesses alike. Deloitte is one of eight of the UK’s leading businesses, who are part of The Princess of Wales’s Business Taskforce along with Iceland Foods, Natwest Group and IKEA UK and Ireland. The said UK Business has also funded more than 1,300 early years teachers to undertake Teach First leadership qualifications.
A year of impact!
A great year of action for The Business Taskforce—showing the vital role business can play in building a society that prioritises its youngest members and those caring for them.
From today, your business can take action:https://t.co/Eoh6SHmNyu pic.twitter.com/YejUS4sujx
— The Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood (@Earlychildhood) May 19, 2025
Launched in March 2023, the Royal Foundation’s Business Taskforce for Early Childhood, championed by Kate Middleton, emphasizes the critical importance of the first five years of a child’s life. Often described as her “life’s work and legacy,” Kate’s initiative encourages businesses to invest in early childhood development to foster happier, healthier, and more productive workforces. Deloitte, a key member of the Taskforce, has taken this call to heart, aligning its new paternity leave policy with Kate’s mission to support working parents and promote early childhood development.
The Taskforce’s economic case is compelling: supporting early childhood could add £45.5 billion annually to the UK economy by improving social skills, reducing remedial costs, and enabling caregivers—especially mothers—to thrive in their careers. Kate’s advocacy has spotlighted the challenges faced by working parents, with Deloitte’s YouGov survey revealing that 67% of working parents experience stress balancing work and family, and 54% of working Civilian mothers believe longer paternity leave for partners would boost their careers. Deloitte UK’s updated policy, effective January 2025, offers 26 weeks of fully paid leave to all new parents, eliminating the previous disparity where fathers received only four weeks compared to 26 weeks for mothers. Additional benefits include 12 weeks of paid neonatal care leave, five days for caregiving, and paid fertility treatment leave. This makes Deloitte the first Big Four firm to equalize maternity and paternity leave, setting a new standard for workplace equality.
While Deloitte’s CEO, Richard Houston, highlighted the policy’s role in supporting employees and advancing equality, The Princess of Wales’ influence is undeniable. Her Early Years initiative has sparked a broader conversation about parental leave policies and their impact on families. The Dad Shift, a campaign group for better paternity leave, praised Kate’s leadership, noting that progressive policies like Deloitte’s could pressure the UK government to improve the current two-week statutory paternity leave, which is poorly paid.
Alex Lloyd-Hunter, co-founder of The Dad Shift said: “Just last week we were outside Buckingham Palace hanging up baby grows spelling ‘Two weeks isn’t enough’, so we’re delighted to learn the Princess of Wales has been championing good paternity leave behind the scenes – Hello! Mag reported.
In 2021, after more than a decade of visiting the organizations supporting the families, children, youth, addiction along with behind the scenes meeting and researches, The Princess of Wales launched the Royal Foundation Center for Early Years. It’s first big project, ‘Shaping Us’ was launched in 2023 to promote the importance of early years in the adulthood and life long journey. You can find more about Princess Kate’s legacy work ‘Early Years’ here.
