PRINCE William gives TV star Gail Porter a warm hug at the launch of his new project aimed at ending the homeless crisis.

The royal, 41 — first taken to a shelter by mum Diana when he was 11 — wants to make homelessness “rare, brief and unrepeated”.

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His Royal Foundation today unveils a five-year project called Homewards, starting with £500,000 for five towns and cities across the UK.

He was joined in Windsor by Scot Gail, 52.

She was left homeless after her TV career “just stopped” when she refused to wear wigs after developing alopecia.

Among other guests was Aston Villa and England defender Tyrone Mings, 30, who spent part of his childhood in a homeless shelter.

William said: “Everyone should have a safe and secure home, be treated with dignity and given the support they need.”

“Through Homewards, I want to make this a reality and over the next five years, give people across the UK hope that homelessness can be prevented when we collaborate.

“I am fortunate to have seen first-hand the tireless work of people and organisations across the sector, the tangible impact their efforts can have and what can be done when communities are able to focus on preventing homelessness, rather than managing it.

“It’s a big task, but I firmly believe that by working together it is possible to make homelessness rare, brief, and unrepeated.

“I am very much looking forward to working with our six locations to make our ambition a reality.”

Matt Downie, chief executive at homelessness charity Crisis, estimates 300,000 people are homeless in the UK.

He said: “Years of low wages and insecure work has left people with little protection from sudden economic shocks and the current welfare system isn’t able to adequately support people when they do need help.

“As a country we spent billions of pounds managing homelessness rather than ending it.”