The Princess of Wales joined a surprise Christmas party celebrating the work of those supporting young people.

The tea party was held to recognise the contribution of some of those looking after children and young people with the Princess chatting with them to find out more about their experiences.

Some of the celebration was filmed and will be shown as part of the Together at Christmas Carol Service which is broadcast on ITV1 and ITVX on Christmas Eve.

Catherine met Brenda Ford, a retired mental health nurse, who now volunteers at local schools in her part of Surrey. Her work now focuses on supporting children as they develop new skills in an intergenerational programme. With Brenda were Jenson, 8, and 11 year old Poppy.

Ray Trevasso was also among the guests at the tea party. Ray is a music therapist at the East Anglia Children’s Hospice (EACH). He was joined by brothers, George, 12 and Henry, 10, who he works with. He has been delivering music therapy to the family since Henry was diagnosed with Spinal Muscular Atrophy at 18 months old.

Another guest is Russell Gray who is a football coach for children’s teams in Manchester. Russell focuses on building confidence in young people and with him was one of those he has helped, 13 year old Rico.

The Together at Christmas Carol Service focuses on early years and all those supporting the youngest members of society, work also at the heart of the Shaping Us campaign run by the Princess of Wales.

Guests at the Westminster Abbey service came from across all sectors working with children and young people.

The service took place on December 8th 2023 with many members of the Royal Family in attendance.

It can be seen on ITV1 on Christmas Eve.