Prince Harry Gives Rare Update on Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet After Their U.K. School Move
Archie and Lilibet switched schools just two days into the term due to logistical and security concerns
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NEED TO KNOW
- Prince Harry shared a rare update on Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet’s schooling this week
- The Duke of Sussex spoke with CTV after skydiving in Toronto on Friday, Sept. 25
- He said his family’s return to the U.K. has been “great,” before joking that he was simply happy to be on solid ground
Prince Harry is offering a rare update on his kids’ new school routine.
On Friday, Sept. 25, the Duke of Sussex, 42, spoke with CTV after completing a daring skydive outside Toronto to make good on a promise to a 102-year-old World War II veteran while raising awareness and support for military charities.
After getting his bearings back on the ground, Harry was asked about his and wife Meghan Markle’s recent decision to move their family back to the U.K.
“It’s been great. It’s been great to be back on British soil,” he said, before joking, “It’s great to be back on terra firma, actually!”
Harry, Meghan and their children — Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5 — arrived in England on Aug. 26, in time for Archie and Lili to begin their fall term at their new U.K. school alongside their classmates.
However, things got off to a rocky start when just two days into the term, the Sussex children switched schools due to security and logistical concerns regarding their commute.
Now, a few weeks into the term, Harry said things are going “great.”
“The kids are happy in school, and it gives me a chance to really focus on Invictus in Birmingham,” Harry continued. “The Games are in July next year.”
At the time of the school change, a spokesperson for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex told PEOPLE, “The decision for the children to move schools was taken following a discussion with the family’s security team about the practicalities of their current arrangements.”
Getting Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet settled in “has been, and remains, their focus. Everything else will fall into place when the time is right,” a source close to Harry and Meghan added.
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Harry recently admitted that even his kids sometimes have a tough time with Monday mornings. During his annual appearance at the WellChild Awards in London on Monday, Sept. 21, he shared how he worked through a tough spot with Archie and Lili earlier that day.
“At breakfast this morning, they had a bit of Monday blues,” he told HELLO! Magazine. “It was always Sunday night blues when you’re being sent away to boarding school like I was, but for them, at breakfast this morning, I decided, you know what? You’re just being a little bit tricky, so I’m going to tell you exactly what I’m doing tonight.”
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Harry took the opportunity to turn the moment into a meaningful conversation, telling Archie and Lilibet about the children and families he would be meeting later that day. The WellChild Awards “celebrate the inspirational achievements of seriously ill children and those who care for them.” Harry has attended 15 of the annual ceremonies since becoming a patron of the organization in 2007.
“They were genuinely fascinated and asking all sorts of questions,” he said. “So, like with all of my work and their mum’s work as well, whatever we can do to try to instil some of that awareness, I think is absolutely crucial.”
A source close to Prince Harry previously told PEOPLE that returning to Britain was something he had been “thinking about for a while,” while another source says the Duke of Sussex wants his children “to understand the world he grew up in and where their family comes from.”
For Meghan, who grew up in California, part of the appeal is that her children can understand both of their parents’ childhoods. “Meghan feels very fortunate that they’re able to give Archie and Lilibet the opportunity to experience both worlds,” a Montecito insider told PEOPLE.