Princess Charlotte isn’t allowed a best friend at school for the cutest reason

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It's easy to feel nostalgic about best friendships from school, made up of secret codes, saved seats and friendship bracelets — and of course, dramatic playground fallouts. 

But Princess Charlotte and her brother Prince George, who attend Thomas's School in Battersea, south-west London, aren’t allowed to have one best friend. 

That’s because Thomas’s School has special rules in place to make sure that no child feels left out. 

Britain's Princess Charlotte of Cambridge, accompanied by her father, Britain's Prince William, Duke of Cambridge, her mother, Britain's Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge and brother, Britain's Prince George of Cambridge, arrives for her first day of school at Thomas's Battersea in London on September 5, 2019.

The school is strictly inclusive and so encourages the kids to get along with everyone, rather than making “best” friends. 

“There’s a policy that if your child is having a party, unless every child in the class is invited, you don’t give out invites in class,” explained Loose Women panelist and former Royal Correspondent, Jane Moore. 

The £18,915 a year school, where George is currently in Year 4 and Charlotte in Year 2, makes sure the students live by its motto, ‘Be Kind’. It does this through teaching children its special values: kindness, courtesy, honesty, respect, perseverance, independence, confidence, leadership, humility and being givers, not takers.

Helen Haslem, head of the lower school greets Princess Charlotte with the Duchess of Cambridge as she arrives for her first day of school at Thomas's Battersea in London on September 5, 2019 in London, England

“We believe passionately in creating an environment that is caring, safe and, above all, kind,” reads Thomas’s School’s website. “Happy pupils flourish and through our shared school values we encourage everyone to model these every day.”

Their website also explains that the school wants its students “To be prepared to stand out from the crowd; to be the first to respond to someone in need; to stand up for what they believe to be right; to challenge what they know to be wrong; to risk making an unpopular decision, if they believe it to be for the greater good; to earn the trust and respect of others.”

Given the charity work they will be expected to do when they get older, Thomas’s School seems like the perfect place for the young royals. 

Kate Hollowood
Kate Hollowood is a freelance journalist and writes about a range of topics for Marie Claire UK, from reports on royal news and current affairs to features on health, careers and relationships. Based in London, Kate has also written for titles like the i paper, Refinery29, Cosmopolitan and It’s Nice That.