The Princess of Wales ignored a wolf whistle as she toured a market to mark the launch of her brand new campaign highlighting children's early years.
Kate, who wore a bottle green coat, visited Kirkgate Market in the northern city of Leeds and met members of the public and stall holders to mark the launch of her "life’s work" – the Shaping Us project, aimed at highlighting the significance of the formative years of a child’s life.
She asked them about their experiences of early childhood, toured some of the stalls in the market and even posed for selfies with surprised shoppers.
As she walked through the market, one person in the crowd could be heard wolf whistling in her direction, however Kate ignored it and carried on with her tour.
Canvassing parents out shopping she said “they feel this is an issue for them” and praised Leeds for its “impressive” initiative having children and young people at the “heart of the city”.
She was mobbed by shoppers unaware the Victorian market would be having a royal visit and one pensioner referred to the future Queen as “love” when they chatted.
Shirley Wainwright, 75, from Harrogate said she made Kate laugh when she told her: “I didn’t know love you were coming, it was a complete surprise.
“I’m just coming on the bus from Harrogate when I came across you.”
After she went to the University of Leeds, where she joined students on the childhood studies degree programme for a lecture and discussion on her Shaping Up campaign.
She told the students : “I really want to come and study again."
And confided in another group: “It makes me want to be back at uni. Everyone says it’s never too late.”
Ahead of the the visit to Leeds today, she also released a video message about her Shaping Us project, where she said: "Our early childhood, the time from pregnancy to the age of five, fundamentally shapes the rest of our lives.
"But as a society, we currently spend much more of our time and energy on later life.
"Today, the Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood is launching a new campaign, Shaping Us, to raise awareness of the life-changing impact we can have when we build a supportive, nurturing world around children and those who care for them.
"Because by focusing our collective time, energy and resources on these most preventative years, we can make a huge difference to the physical and mental health and happiness of generations to come."
Kate's trip to Leeds today comes after a pre-launch event for her Shaping Us campaign at Bafta headquarters in London last night, where she gave a speech.
Prince William accompanied his wife to the event, alongside the Princess’s team of celebrity ambassadors including radio DJ Ferne Cotton and podcaster Giovanna Fletcher.
The long-term project, launched on Tuesday by The Royal Foundation Centre for Early Childhood, is said to be Kate's "life's work", which she hopes will influence attitudes towards children in the early years period of their lives.
A 90-second claymation film has also been released, depicting how the development of a young girl from the age of zero to five is shaped by interactions and her environment, and will be shown in cinemas from Friday.
Royal sources said the project would become Kate's "life's work" while also using her mental health campaigning with William over the last decade as a blueprint for potential success.
The campaign has the support of a number of other notable faces, including musician Professor Green, former Love Island star Zara McDermott and footballer Leah Williamson.
A Kensington Palace spokesman said the importance of early years development will be "key focus" for Kate for the "rest of her life".
In her speech, mum -of-three Kate said: "As the campaign progresses, we will explore in more depth the importance of a child’s social and emotional world - the significance of relationships in shaping a child’s understanding of themselves and the world in which they live and also the impact of the surroundings and experiences a child is exposed to during these formative years.
"Together these play a key role in shaping our future lives.
"Yet they rarely get as much focus as our physical health and cognitive development."
