The Prince of Wales has teamed up with Steven Bartlett and former Prime Minister Gordon Brown to champion a cause close to his heart – as Meghan Markle is set to launch her new wine. 

William, 43, is paying a visit to Sheffield today, which marks what would have been his mother Princess Diana’s 64th birthday. 

William met with former PM and multibank founder Gordon Brown and Diary Of A CEO founder Bartlett to celebrate two years of the Homewards initiative.

Appearing on a panel together, William appeared to laugh and joke with the former PM while also reflecting on the organisation’s progress. 

It’s certainly a profound meeting for the royal, as Diana took William and his brother Harry to homelessness shelters when they were children. 

Since then, he has been inspired to continue his work in her memory, becoming patron of organisations including Centrepoint and The Passage. 

In a documentary with ITV last year, William made a rare reference to his time with his mother before her death in 1997 – and admitted she would this his quest to eradicate homelessness is ‘mad’. 

In the first episode of the two-part programme, the royal said: ‘When I was very small, my mother started talking about homelessness, much like I do with my children now on the school run.’

Prince William has teamed up with Steven Bartlett and former Prime Minister Gordon Brown to champion a cause close to his heart

William, 43, is paying a visit to Sheffield today, which marks what would have been his mother Princess Diana ‘s 64th birthday. Pictured with Gordon Brown and Steven Bartlett

Princess Diana would tell her eldest son why people were there and he said ‘it definitely had a big impact’. 

July 1 will also mark an important day for Prince Harry’s wife Meghan Markle, who is set to release her first ever wine with her lifestyle brand, As ever. 

The Duchess of Sussex, 43, announced last month that she would be releasing a Napa Valley rosé wine – her first foray into the wine market. 

The product will be sourced from the famous region of California, up the west coast from her Montecito mansion.

Announcing new items in her collection – which also included orange blossom honey and apricot spread – Meghan said: ‘We are pleased to share that many favourites from our debut As Ever collection are back – and, we’ve added something new. We hope you find some special treats that bring extra joy to you and your loved ones.’

Meanwhile, the heir to the throne is celebrating two years of Homewards, part of his ambitious plan to end homelessness. 

For the past two years, Royal Foundation’s Homewards programme has set out to demonstrate ways to end homelessness and aims to make it ‘rare, brief and unrepeated’. 

Some 100 initiatives are in place across six locations around the UK, and 300 plus homes – a mixture of empty accommodation, private rentals and new builds – are forecast to be delivered through Homewards’ Innovative Housing Projects.

Appearing on a panel together, William appeared to laugh and joke with the former PM

William launched his Homewards programme, which aims to develop a blueprint for eradicating homelessness in all its forms, in 2023

The Prince of Wales, 43, appeared in good spirits as he arrived in Sheffield this morning

The Prince of Wales speaks to members during the two year anniversary event of the Homewards programm

The first residents moved into flats in Aberdeen in March after Homewards brought together a local housing association, high street retailers and others to provide and furnish the property, and the first tenants in Sheffield are moving in this week.

The project has also launched a new early intervention initiative in schools to identify young people most at risk of homelessness and secured £3 million for Homewards locations from partners and coalition members.

This is in addition to £50 million available by Lloyds Banking Group to organisations tackling homelessness through low cost rentals.

Ahead of his visit, William released an open letter to the six participating areas – Sheffield, Newport, Aberdeen, Northern Ireland, Bournemouth and Christchurch and Poole – to commend their progress. 

The prince said: ‘There are now people who are no longer experiencing homelessness thanks to your tremendous efforts. I am immensely proud to say that your collective effort has already allowed us to achieve lasting impact.

‘After a year of convening, our second year has seen Homewards shift into delivery mode.’

He added: ‘Together, we are demonstrating tangible impact. I know this is a mammoth challenge and change won’t come overnight, but over the past year we’ve started to shift the dial and there are now people who are no longer experiencing homelessness thanks to your tremendous efforts.’ 

Prince William first visited The Passage with his mother Diana and brother Harry in 1993

In a letter to organisations to mark the anniversary, the prince said: ‘There are now people who are no longer experiencing homelessness thanks to your tremendous efforts’

He described how creating long-term change was ‘complex and unpredictable’, however he added: ‘But I am confident we can lead and inspire understanding, empathy and optimism that homelessness can be ended.’ The prince ended his letter by signing it in his own handwriting: ‘Keep going! William’. 

William launched his Homewards programme, which aims to develop a blueprint for eradicating homelessness in all its forms, in 2023. 

Initiatives vary from supporting at risk groups to ensure they do not become homeless in the first place, to freeing up housing through unique public/private partnerships.

The prince is also building low-cost rental on his own Duchy of Cornwall land.

William has been particularly personally keen to highlight the often deep-seated nature of the problem: homelessness doesn’t just mean rough-sleeping, but also thousands of young people and families ‘sofa surfing’ or living in substandard bed and breakfast accommodation.

But it is an issue that often doesn’t get much public or media attention, he says.

Elsewhere today, Meghan Markle is set to release her first-ever wine. Pictured in her Netflix show, With Love, Meghan

The Duchess of Sussex, 43, announced last month that she would be releasing a Napa Valley rosé wine (pictured) on July 1

Liz Laurence, Homewards’ programme director, said: ‘We’re proud to say, as we head into our third year, that Homewards is the broadest collective effort working to prevent homelessness across the UK.’

Ms Laurence added: ‘We set out with a mission to demonstrate that together it’s possible to end homelessness, and I think we are really confident about where we are… We are starting really to see a difference on the ground.’

Polly Neate, former chief executive of Shelter and now an independent social policy commentator, said: ‘In our wider culture, as a country, we see homelessness as something that is inevitable, that we don’t really understand, that we feel powerless about doing anything about.

‘What Prince William and Homewards are doing, if you want to put it in a nutshell, is tackling that culture straight on and saying ‘This is not inevitable. This is preventable’.’