Prince George faces a big year next year as he’s set to change schools, but one royal expert thinks he could find it “tougher” than his dad William did at his age.
In September 2026, after he turns 13, George will reportedly move onto the next phase of his education. The future king currently attends Lambrook School in Berkshire. His younger siblings, Princess Charlotte, 10, and Prince Louis, seven, also attend.
But next year, George will embrace a new chapter. Although his next school hasn’t been confirmed, rumours have been floating around over where he’ll go.
Prince George could find secondary school ‘tougher’ than William
As George prepares to enter Year 7, many are drawing comparisons between the young prince’s upcoming transition and that of his father, Prince William.
But according to royal experts, George’s path might be more emotionally challenging, even if his circumstances seem more stable.
Unlike William, who started at Eton College during his parents’ highly publicised separation, George has been raised in a loving and stable home with Princess Kate and Prince William.
Former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond believes the shift could be “tougher” for George precisely because of that stability.
“When William was 13, he began his secondary education at Eton College. Both his parents were at his side, but by then, they were officially separated,” she told The Mirror. “In a way, being at boarding school became a haven for William. Things are very different for George, who has been brought up in a household full of love and harmony.”
Bond suggested that this could actually make the shift away from home even more difficult, if George decides to go to boarding school.
“It might be tougher for him to suddenly find himself living away at boarding school,” she added.
Prince George’s role within royal family
While the final decision on where George will go hasn’t been revealed, the shortlist is reportedly down to prestigious institutions like Eton, William and Harry’s alma mater, and Marlborough College, which Kate attended.
Eton College is a boarding school for boys aged between 13 and 18. It’s located a short drive from the Wales family’s Forest Lodge home in Windsor Great Park.
Marlborough College is a co-educational, independent boarding school for pupils aged 13 to 18.
But whatever the final choice, Bond believes it won’t be imposed on George.
“I’m sure it will have been a family decision, and not one simply imposed on the young prince,” she said.
Despite being second in line to the throne, George has been largely shielded from public life. But over the past year, he’s taken small but significant steps into the spotlight.
In May, he joined his parents at a VE Day tea party, speaking with Second World War veterans.
In November, he accompanied Kate to the Royal British Legion’s Festival of Remembrance.
Read more: Princess Charlotte’s sweet gesture towards Prince George caught on camera on Christmas Day
And most recently, he helped his dad prepare Christmas lunch at a London homelessness shelter. When he was 11 in 1993, William paid a visit to The Passage with his mother, Princess Diana.
Still, Bond believes these moments are exceptions, not the start of regular royal duties.
She said William and Kate will continue to “protect” George for “as long as possible from the public glare that lies ahead”.
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