For years now, Prince Harry’s security fight has been centered on himself, at least as far as RAVEC, the Met Police and Buckingham Palace were concerned. While Harry repeatedly said in interviews that the UK security situation was so bad, he would never bring his wife and children back, no one ever made a move to have RAVEC look specifically at security risks facing the Duchess of Sussex or her children. It was always centered on Harry, Harry’s non-existent security, Harry’s paused risk assessment, Harry’s volte-face on bringing his wife and kids back to the UK. Well, nearly three weeks after the Sussexes returned to Britain, RAVEC is finally doing a risk assessment for Meghan.
The Duchess of Sussex has been granted her first government-backed security review since quitting royal duties, The Telegraph can reveal. Both the Sussexes will receive an official risk assessment imminently, following their relocation to the UK.
The couple have been asked by the Royal and VIP Executive Committee (Ravec) to provide full details of their new daily routines. The committee chairman wrote to the Duke of Sussex last week confirming that in light of their changed circumstances, it had commissioned a new risk assessment for him and a separate one for his wife.
Ravec, which is part of the Home Office, has asked the couple to provide as much detail as possible about their routines to evaluate any changes to the level of threat they face. It is understood to have explained the need to establish a “pattern of life”, based upon the minutiae of the family’s new life in Britain.
This will include daily journeys such as the school run, the specific addresses involved, timings and various routes taken, as well as other regular movements made by all members of the family and any other evidence they consider relevant. The committee is expected to meet again to discuss the findings of the review when it has been completed.
The assessment will be the Duchess’s first since she was granted police protection as a working member of the Royal family after marrying the Duke in 2018.
“The assessment will be the Duchess’s first since she was granted police protection…after marrying the Duke in 2018.” *sad clown noise* It looks like RAVEC has never really been concerned with actually monitoring threats against high-profile individuals, or keeping abreast of a years-long targeting of Meghan specifically by violent right-wing racists in Britain. Anyway, the other significant part of this Telegraph exclusive was this: “This will include daily journeys such as the school run, the specific addresses involved, timings and various routes taken…” The moment Meghan told RAVEC about Archie and Lili’s school, she was encouraged to remove her children from that particular school.
Prince Archie and Princess Lilibet have switched schools just two days into the new term. The children of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle — 7-year-old Archie and 5-year-old Lilibet — began classes in the U.K. last week shortly after their family’s move back to Harry’s home country. However, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex moved their kids to a different school amid security concerns.
A spokesperson for the Duke and Duchess of Sussex tells 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.”
“The parents remain extremely grateful to all the teachers and staff for the love, care and effort they have shown their family,” the spokesperson adds. “This decision should in no way be interpreted as a reflection on the school or the exceptional care the children have received there.”
Hello! magazine reported that the security concerns stem from heavy traffic in the area and the distance between the school and their home, rather than the school itself. The outlet said that concerns were elevated after an incident “made it difficult for their vehicles to stay in convoy.”
Although the Duke and Duchess of Sussex’s bodyguards checked the school over the summer, the school run was not able to be assessed until classes were back in session, Hello! adds.
A friend told the outlet, “It’s a real shame, because they absolutely adored the school, the kids and their parents. It was perfect for them in every way, and the children really enjoyed their time there. They really wanted to make it work, but they had to make a difficult decision based on the fact that the team couldn’t make the school run operationally secure.”
Not even one month back in the UK and it’s like this. God, I wish Meghan and the kids had just stayed in Montecito where it’s safe and there aren’t security issues during the school run. Just awful. It was probably the kind of hectic situation where even if Meghan had “royal protection,” it wouldn’t have made much difference for the traffic around the school as well.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Meghan’s Instagram.
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- Harry, Duke of Sussex, and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, at the Opening Ceremony of the 2020 Invictus Games in The Hague, Netherlands, on 16th April 2022,Image: 683531632, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Credit line: – / Avalon
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- Harry, Duke of Sussex, and Meghan, Duchess of Sussex, at the Opening Ceremony of the 2020 Invictus Games in The Hague, Netherlands, on 16th April 2022,Image: 683531684, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Credit line: – / Avalon
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- Invictus Games Prinz Harry und Meghan beim Rollstuhl Basketball Finale Prinz Harry, Herzog von Sussex gemeinsam mit Ehefrau Meghan Markle, Herzogin von Sussex beim Rollstuhl-Basketball Finale zwischen Frankreich und der USA im Rahmen der Invictus Games 2023, Duesseldorf, 13.09.2023 Duesseldorf Nordrhein-Westfalen Deutschland *** Invictus Games Prince Harry and Meghan at the Wheelchair Basketball Final Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex together with wife Meghan Markle, Duchess of Sussex at the Wheelchair Basketball Final between France and the USA during the Invictus Games 2023, Duesseldorf, 13 09 2023 Duesseldorf Nordrhein Westfalen Germany,Image: 805086128, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: imago is entitled to issue a simple usage license at the time of provision. Personality and trademark rights as well as copyright laws regarding art-works shown must be observed. Commercial use at your own risk., Model Release: no, Credit line: IMAGO / Avalon
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- Herzogin Meghan bei den Invictus Games Düsseldorf 2023 in der Merkur Spiel-Arena. Düsseldorf, 15.09.2023 *** Duchess Meghan at the Invictus Games Düsseldorf 2023 at the Merkur Spiel Arena Düsseldorf, 15 09 2023. Foto:xK.xIlbogax/xFuturexImagex invictus_1508,Image: 806202057, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: imago is entitled to issue a simple usage license at the time of provision. Personality and trademark rights as well as copyright laws regarding art-works shown must be observed. Commercial use at your own risk., Model Release: no, Credit line: IMAGO/Kadir Ilboga / Avalon
I read the comment on having to change schools because of security reasons as coming from their own private security and not an official UK team?
Perhaps I’m reading it wrong?
You are not reading it incorrectly, that is what it says.
Considering that Harry had to fight for Meghan to get security when she became a working royal, I suspect this is the first time ever that RAVEC is doing a risk assessment for Meghan.
THIS!!!!
BEFORE Prince Harry knew who was on Ravec, it was decided, BEFORE the marriage, not to give Meghan security.
BEFORE the Oprah interview, a pregnant Meghan was told her child would not receive a title or security, but she was expected to parade the baby to the UK tabloids. (Like Beatrice parades her Asian step-son but not her biological daughters.)
Tom Bowers was on Sykes’s YT and spilt the beans. The issue with Meghan and the children having security has absolutely nothing to do with risks. Bowers and the people he works for have “concerns” about the OPTICS of a mixed-race Duchess and her offspring being escorted in a royal cortege. That’s it.
So now, when you hear “non-working royal_ know that this was the third time they tried to remove security, and it finally stuck. However, the RF had to include Prince Harry in the stitch-up, hence their desperation for them to divorce. To separate Prince Harry from his mixed-race wife and kids. They have been straight up about it. The Daily Beast journalist who wrote that “All would be forgiven if Harry divorced Meghan and put the kids in boarding school and then he should marry an English white woman.”
The Spectator was a little more discrete, it said he should marry and English Rose. I have never heard of an English rose with 43% Nigerian genes before. Can’t mention them of course. Meghan did, she had herself checked.
I suspect that you are right. I had noticed when Meghan lived in the UK that her solo engagements seemed to be scheduled for times when Harry did not have engagements and could be at home, and assumed that this was because HIS protection officers were accompanying her, while he remained at home with Archie. And that they made secure arrangements for the baby when they both needed to be out together.
What about the kids? They need their own security assessment.
Amateur hour. They couldn’t find out in advance what the traffic is like during school runs from any other source? What a complete farce, so much disruption to not just their kids but the others at that school, teachers etc. It feels like the people working for them don’t really know what they’re doing, which is on Harry & Meghan for hiring them I guess.
I’m sure Meghan and Harry’s people are good professionals – they’ve not had an incident that we know about since the New York car chase – but what their team is lacking is precisely what RAVEC has always refused to give them: intelligence about threats, particularly on UK soil. That’s the missing piece and what Harry’s fighting so hard for (since he is not allowed to pay for any kind of Met security per the judge in the court case, which every journalist in the UK, US and elsewhere always fail to note)
Okay, sure – clearly they should be given the specific intel on specific threats.
But they know that in general this family need security. That the school run will involve bodyguards and security wherever it is. It shouldn’t even need specific threat intel to decide if the traffic or geography in an area is the kind that will make this generally impossible. “It was the holidays, how could we possibly tell how busy the streets would be in term time?” is just bullshit.
Unless the issue is paparazzi adding to the traffic, but they’d appear around any school chosen.
If there were a bunch of security teams driving around once Harry and Meghan arrived checking local school routes in the Cotswolds, for certain that would have been leaked. I get why they did it over the summer, nice and discreet since this move has obviously been in the works for some time now. And it’s the Daily Mail that is leading with the headline that their security team did their checks over the summer, so as to put the blame on Harry and Meghan and their team, rather than RAVEC where it belongs.
Also, it’s only a matter of time before a Rota journalist posts the name of the school, since the kids aren’t attending anymore. Big exclusive! Huge splash!
If their security had access to security intelligence from the UK police, they would be able to do a security assessment before the children went to school. It just shows how ridiculous it is that RAVEC refuses to give Harry and Meghan security.
This.
RAVEC provides intel and heads up threats. H&M’s team handles the physicality part of security re: their daily life.
But it’s far more convenient to blame M&H for being stupid, negligent, lacking foresight, etc. At this point, it’s only a short step to start accusing them of bad parenting, child abuse, and gross negligence. And of course, don’t blame the tabloids and NYT for profiling the children with full on daily speculations and photos. why? Because H&M made them do it.
All of us here know that the Sussexes need and deserve security so that’s not in question. But as of *this summer* there was still drama about it from the King and others to the point where they were issuing statements from their team. They chose to go back anyway despite the precarious situation. To me it’s not wrong to suggest that this might not have been a great choice and it was also handled poorly.
The school thing is just silly. There’s no explanation for it. If they are as careful as people here claim and indeed as they have been in the past this wouldn’t have happened. I could understand if there had been a threat called in or something (maybe there was but the extremely apologetic language indicates no), but this is just poor organization.
I could understand Harry forcing the issue there more if it was just them.
Frankly I think if this whole thing was their goal all along, they waited too long in California to do it.
I’m remembering an interview with Meghan in Montecito where she was with her chickens and she was talking about how grateful they were there, and she herself stated she would hate having to take her kids to school in the UK with everything that would entail. I guess she wasn’t wrong.
@Crystal. Please link this interview. Thanks.
This is something Meghan has said a few times. At first with Oprah in 2021, then in the Cut article (which yes was unnecessarily snarky at times but the quote is still there), and then in various clips. Of course if I had searched yesterday with the term “school run” it would have been there, but you can understand the handicap now. But she has often remarked that she preferred California because she can “live authentically”, feels safer, etc, and would hate the publicity associated with bringing her children to school in the UK.
By the way the house in Montecito was also not even a given for them to obtain in the first place as Meghan herself said – they couldn’t even go see it at first because they couldn’t afford it, but their Netflix and Spotify deals made it happen and Meghan herself said this and that they did “everything” to get it.
Some commenters here seem to think that retconning what the Sussexes have said is a way of supporting them but their statements on the record have not in any way indicated that Montecito was anything but a refuge for them, even them calling it their “forever home”. They’re capable of changing their minds of course, but let’s not rewrite things.
OK @Crystal, I took one for the team. Here is the exact quote from Meghan’s The Cut interview, which says nothing about security. Most of it isn’t even a direct quote, it’s the reporter paraphrasing:
“Earlier in our conversation about her goals for the life she’s creating here, she’d remarked upon how, if Archie were in school in the U.K., she’d never be able to do school pickup and drop-off without it being a royal photo call with a press pen of 40 people snapping pictures. “Sorry, I have a problem with that. That doesn’t make me obsessed with privacy. That makes me a strong and good parent protecting my child,”
So, if you’ve got other receipts for claiming things about Meghan that she didn’t say, and then accusing people of “retconning” or whatever, we’re all ears
Actually, the specific one that I was referencing was a video interview next to the chicken coop where she stated that she was grateful to have the peace of California and the chickens and not doing a UK school run, but I can’t find it in the multitudes of crap that have sprung up since. But let’s contextualize with the quote from her podcast with Emma Grede: “I love that I can do drop off and pick up at school and do meetings in between and go to Disneyland for two days, as we just did. And, you know, volunteer to serve hot lunch at school or be the chaperone for the kindergarten field trip.”
I’m not going to go through every single comment of everyone who has basically rewritten what they’ve said because you can see it for yourself by visiting past posts. Before they announced this move, commenters on this site (including me) were convinced by everything they’d said that while Harry valued his British side and wanted his children to be familiar with it, Montecito was their home. That they would never return at least in the capacity they wish to now. Then once they announced the news the rationalizations and weird explanations started rolling in from people. Certain commenters now are saying they never said they’d stay there, America actually isn’t that safe, they never said they wanted to be in Montecito long term etc etc. Again, the Sussexes have the right to change their minds, and people are entitled to their opinions but just because someone disagrees doesn’t mean they’re a “deranger” (that term is starting to irritate me to the same degree that “media literacy” does).
It’s not just the destination, but also the starting point. If they didn’t know where they would be living, their security team would have to come up with multiple scenarios.
I have to agree with you, Meme. Total lack of foresight and common sense. How could any one (security team or parents) not predict that there would be a traffic snarl at a school run? It’s common everywhere, and whenever I drive past one I always am thankful I only have dogs.
Yeah I am with Meme that makes no sense. How did you not know that until you got them at that school?
This also flies in the face of the argument they did this for the children’s safety/welfare. Amid all the other jarring changes the kids are removed from school after two days? Why would they uproot their lives and put their kids in a new school without a thorough security review *first*. I have no idea what’s going on here but something feels really off to me.
Agree. This is a really weird thing to mess up. They didn’t know about traffic? distance? until school started?
Agree. It’s definitely Amateur Hour and not what I would expect of them. Something is happening behind the scenes because on the surface, this looks messy.
If security and being close to the King were actually their concerns they would have sent the children to Lambrook. Would have been a good opportunity for them to get to know their cousins on neutral ground as well. All the safety procedures are already in place there. The King visits regularly to watch matches and plays etc and jt never makes the tabloids.
Who’s jt?
Charles watches plays and matches of the wails kids? That’s some hilarious propaganda right there given everything we know.
How would they know about school traffic during the summer when school was in recess.
They could have … asked? The school, the local police, the parents’ association? “Hey guys, so how many cars regularly come down this street/that road in term time? Oh, that many huh? Hmmm, that could make it tricky with our security team. Maybe we’d be better with a school in a more rural/isolated/less traffic dense area!”
“It was probably the kind of hectic situation where even if Meghan had “royal protection,” it wouldn’t have made much difference for the traffic around the school as well.”
The real difference is that the Sussexes’ personal security team are moving BLIND every day. Whereas “royal protection” has the latest intel.
Just as everyone is BLIND to the reasons the Sussexes felt the need to move at this moment. I can not believe they took this move lightly, considering the security issues.
In fact, this looks like an “invisible hand” security situation. The last thing Charles wants is for something to happen to the Sussexes on “his watch” (William wouldn’t care less. When Meghan lost her baby, he posted about his family losing their dog as though the situations were somehow the same). Perhaps this “invisible hand” is also why there have been no paparazzi pics of the family, even though the press has pics of them disembarking from the private plane.
Is it a coincidence that the children were pulled the same day Ravec decides to do a full family threat assessment? Spidey senses feel like an “invisible hand” told the Sussexes to pull the kids. At least, until they can get better protection or find a better-protected school and school run. Remember, Prince Harry already publicly called out the Home Office for failing to alert the family to active threats.
Yes, the timing seems interesting to me as well. Either their security team said “you need to change schools” and that was the trigger for RAVEC being involved specifically with Meghan (and presumably the kids), or RAVEC got involved and said “you need to change schools.”
Something like the school run is pretty much impossible to assess before school is in session. Even if they had been planning this move for the past year, until you know specifically where you’re living and the specific school, and you can assess that route and traffic during the school run times, you’re just not going to know. This is where having access to gov intelligence would have helped them.
When I first saw these headlines I was worried for them and I still am but this story seems to have a more nuanced and level headed approach. Nothing “happened” per se, the security team just did what it was supposed to do and changed course based on the latest information it had. I’m sure they had a list of 2-3 schools that were distinct possibilities.
Yup!
I think the Home Office got alerts and told the Sussexes to pull the kids. Prince Harry had already blasted the Home Office for not giving them intel on threats that the US eventually gave him.
Then the Home Office told RAVEC/The Wasp to do its job and conduct the darn security assessments on the entire family.
Just connecting the points:
Also within this 48-hour timeframe, RAVEC security denier The Wasp got a face-saving kudos moment with the Ugandan situation. I was wondering why they were bringing up his name because the entire RAVEC debacle, from denying Meghan security BEFORE marriage, to telling a pregnant Meghan that Archie would not get royal protection, to the made-up “non-working royals” bs for denying security… all at the hands of The Wasp.
Remember, their security being pulled while they were in Canada was blamed on the last Lord Chamberlain, who then promptly QUIT!!! This new Lord Chamberlain seems to have been steamrolled into writing that stupid letter, and now the Wasp is acting like the hero fixing the mess that he started. The Wasp is powerful and is still trying to weasel his way back into the Firm’s fold.
I am in no way qualified to talk about security, their team will know best. What I would have done is send two cars (depending on what other parents drive, something nondescript), one with the nanny picking up Lili, another one with a security guy who looks like a regular dad or another nanny/housekeeper to pick up Archie. If the kids wear caps to hide their hair it would have just been two “parents” picking up their child. No suspicious convoy.
Interesting that they had to switch schools and all of a sudden RAVEC decides that a risk assessment for Meghan is necessary. After 7 years of not mentioning her and her risk at all. I am wary of RAVEC knowing their address, their routine, the school. Wonder how long it will take until the information is leaked? Look guys, there is no way to protect you, best you go back to California, make William happy by being the “exiled” couple again. I don’t trust them. Isn’t the Wasp still sitting on the board of RAVEC? And of course William’s man?
Becks1, I’m replying to your comment about the UK government: Given the dismal economic reports coming out of the UK right now, the new PM is probably happy for this temporary distraction.
But since the PM stated clearly regarding the Sussex’ security “it’s a private matter” he’s also not here for the BRF bullshit about RAVEC, specifically the repeated attempts by Buckingham Palace to pin Royal security on government decisions from the Home Office on down. It’s not a government responsibility, said the PM clearly; it’s a PRIVATE matter. It’s the BRF’s reps on RAVEC who decide, who always have decided about royal security and if Charles pushes Burnham too far I’d love to see the PM toss the hot potato right back to the BRF….
Unfortunately, I don’t think anyone in the BRF, including CRex, would give a flying F if anything terrible happened to the Sussexes. In fact, I think they would be delighted.
I don’t know if Charles would be personally delighted or just relieved, but for the optics I don’t think he wants anything to happen to them on HIS watch. Too many shades of Diana.
I wonder if Chuck even cares about “his watch” anymore. If he truly did, this farce wouldn’t be happening right now, he would have actually tried to be the bigger man (a King, even!) and see the situation from Harry’s POV. And provide security for the Sussexes, not just his sex offender brother.
Charles may not care but I think government officials care, so I wonder if that’s the push/pull happening behind the scenes.
As the whole family was delighted when Diana died. Liz, jealous Anne, Charles…
I’ve said it before — regardless of how Charles views Harry and Meghan’s status, THEIR KIDS are still royal children and deserve the same protection as other young royal children like Charlotte or Louis. Charles is a disgusting man.
Multiple things can be true here. Charles is a disgusting man AND if Harry knew that only Ravec intel would make the kids safe he shouldn’t have uprooted and moved them before the guarantee of that security.
What if the only way to guarantee an assessment was for them to be in the UK. RAVEC can not keep delaying the report with them over in the US
Then that’s a dangerous game to be playing.
As a grandmother, I have no words to express how much I despise Charles. It’s in his hands.
1. I don’t believe the Sussexes’s decision to move to the UK is a last minute one. This is well planned with having no security confirmed (and I believe not expected). The children are not the first one to be removed from an elite (read for the very wealthy) school for security reason.
2. I believe the RAVEC decision is the consequence of a backlash of the memo and a public voice that is growing for their security. 3. Do I believe RAVEC is sincere? No I don’t. Why the letter they sent to the Sussexes was leaked to the press? When you see the information they are seeking and their reputation for leaking, I don’t see the Sussexes provided it which will give RAVEC a good reason to pretend they can’t complete the assessment. Thus no protection (Truly hope I’m wrong). I also kind of regret they moved back to the UK. But also, I’m proud that they refuse to be Intimidated by all the hate going around. They have the right to live in that country.
‘Including the school run,’ That information changed yesterday which will cause, or be used as an excuse for doing nothing or another delay. They will have a point.
On your 1. point, since it was announced last spring that Harry would receive an updated assessment they would have planned the move with the assumption that a legitimate assessment would show a security need. They were unaware that it had been secretly paused, which might have changed their plans.
Yup Mairzy Doats 👍
“Not even one month back in the UK and it’s like this. God, I wish Meghan and the kids had just stayed in Montecito where it’s safe and there aren’t security issues during the school run. Just awful”.
Agreed, Kaiser.
But if they like it, I love it. The heck?
IKR. Unlike Andrew or the pedos that royals like to hang out with.
H & M should have known better and not have children! What were they thinking? Or even got married! Or like be born. This would all go away. /s
💯💯💯
I think charles will eventually let andrew do the church walks. Andrew gets full. Security. Very dysfunctional family.
Bullseye 🎯 @kit. Absolute bullseye 🎯
Who would have guessed it ? I don’t think they will ever get their security and no matter how much harry screams. The government left it royals and royals doens’t and most public is not in favor of it either. No matter how much scream public is not ok with paying or anyone can hire. Also anyone saying yes taylor swift and other billionaire when they visit uk got for few weeks. But harry staying and demanding 24×7 is not good. Royals and chuck set him up and he falls for it.
Sadly, I agree. And stories like this make it sounds like they want security so they can blue light their way through school run traffic.
It’s really not helping them, they need to be careful with their PR…
I don’t think they wouldn’t blue light, it would draw too much attention.
Perhaps Harry and Meghan should use a helicopter, as William and Kate did, to bring George to Eton, even though Windsor Castle is only a 10-minute drive from Eton.
Cough Andrew cough
Andy security got paid by chuck that’s why this situation is so messed up. Yorks sister didn’t have any security because chuck made sure of it. Sussex are in yorks position now, they are demanding this insane. Harry is real delusional that chuck and William will allow him to have security.
This is checkmate by royals and co. Now thinking about it when sussex in usa they are allowed to pop up random which messed up royals and their events. Now they are in uk , sussex already cancelled the events because of security. Without ravec they can’t and won’t go to public and do events like they used to .
The British monarchy lasted this long because they are cunning and clever. This is grand master checkmate. Now meghan and harry is hold up in their home in uk and won’t clash with royals.
There’s not much to say about this, but its evident things are getting leaked all over the place, they are most likely going to have to come up with new tactics to get through this till they get back home which i’m still hoping they are going back home. all i know they didnt have this trouble till they got to the UK.
You can’t regulate school runs though! A friend of mine lives around that part of the world and traffic is a joke.
Security or not, everyone will be stuck in traffic….
I am not sure what they expect there.
Would William’s children be stuck in traffic?
Funny you should say that, back when they lived in London they were Fail articles showing Kate stuck in traffic! If you’ll google you can still find them. It seems that their current school is close to home and through private roads, so not as much of a problem. William has spoken about slow school runs in interviews though…
@HandforthParish
Didn’t William and Kate drop off George at Eton via helicopter…
Thanks, it’s interesting that this can happen even to the Wales.
No idea!
The Wails complain not because it’s true, because it’s yet another excuse. They literally made the school run their excuse for never working, of course they pretend they’re like everyone else. They ARE NEVER stuck in traffic. Only a gullible d-ranger believes that. Willy said it,it must be true 🙃🙃😂😂
@Harriet that’s hilarious and sad if true, considering the proximity of Eton to Forest Lodge.
and yes reports were that in London their convoy taking the kids to school was a major issue traffic wise, especially at the school itself.
Each Wales child has their own armed RPO as well as kate so that is a huge difference if they do get stuck in traffic.
So it’s not even the same situation at all.
@sue
William and Kate NEVER drove the children to school; security always did it. This is a well-known fact—though rarely mentioned—among the other students’ parents, who used to complain about having to wait in traffic outside the school for up to 20 minutes every day while the royals’ security team checked the building and escorted the children to class. One bodyguard would always sit in the classroom with George during lessons, while another remained in the building. At the time, when asked by a journalist, one of the mothers stated that they never saw either parent, noting that security always brought the children in.
W&K would show up before the start of the school year for a photo op with the administration—and that was it.
Even that happened a long time ago; It turns out the children have been at boarding school for several years, yet Kate still uses driving them ready for school as an excuse for her laziness.
Kastanka I’m aware they mostly didn’t do that and didn’t say they did. I was replying to a previous comment claiming they were stuck in traffic. I know the lies pretty well.
School drop offs and pick ups are always chaotic especially when all the children are driven by parents/caregivers and not bussed in. Hopefully the children remain safe because they are far to young to understand just how serious the threat to their safety is and they had no choice about this move.
Traffic can be handled. But the obsessed craziness enabled by the press and SM, this type of threat requires better government intel like RAVEC. UK has its ultra nationalist hate groups and they are poised, like here in the US and EU, to win political seats and power. Given the vitriol drummed up by the press against the Sussex family, doubt they would be safe anywhere. It’s the same way when a US politician gets on a podium and talks about killing their Democratic opponents and there’s no pushback or punishment. It’s being normalized and death of Diana already sets the precedent. Think of the millions that have been made and many more in the future.
This magical thinking that Montecito is a safe cage belies that reality. And why should the children be exiled and forced to live like that?
If the kids have to be homeschooled by “governesses” or “private tutors” due to security risks, that kills the supposition that they moved back because of the Great British School System.
Oh dear. Back to the English governesses and English tutors. Is it the fabled Mr. Rochester and poor Jane? Barbara Cartland and lovers of Mills and Boons rejoice!
Charles remains a bad parent and grandparent
If this continues then harry needs to give up on his father.
I keep waiting for that one piece of information that will make this move make sense. We clearly support these two and their decisions but…….I’m increasingly concerned. And that feeling gets stronger with every messy incident/change. I continue to hope and pray for their safety and happiness. I hope this is all worth whatever they are gaining from the move back to Salty Island with those GHOULS.
Would the press stop its coverage of the Sussex family if they lived in the US? Did it ever? Same with their children. Were they given anonymity? The BBC journalist posted a photo of a man and a woman holding hands of a chimpanzee after Archie’s birth. The BBC?! The supposed outrage toward Lili because she was named after QE2? The US press and SM have no problems with the ongoing calls for violence and harassment against many groups, so a much ridiculed family is no exception here.
The answer is: NO.
In fact, while Meghan was a working Royal, there were analyses done re: use of bots, SM groups to amplify the lies and drive much of the hate on SM platforms against Meghan. A great deal of that coordinated efforts was done by AMERICANS.
So the US is no safe haven. And why would anyone here think that given what we see daily with coordinated governmental sponsored suppression, violent tactics toward its own citizens and residents, invasion of privacy, gutting the Constitution, and outright corruption?
It was a disgusting racist post but just for clarity Danny Baker who did the chimp photo was not a journalist in any sense, he is a comedy/music writer (one of the early Punk guys) and DJ. And to be fair the BBC rightly sacked him from his local radio show for this.
“The couple have been asked by the Royal and VIP Executive Committee (Ravec) to provide full details of their new daily routines. ”
Given the fact that the UK press is clearly being given a blow-by-blow account of the Sussexes’ security review proceedings against all established protocol, further compromising their security and enabling the media to use the information to whip up more fury against them, I would be VERY hesitant to provide them with any information. And I would go so far as to say that it would not surprise me if RAVEC received all that information and STILL decided that Meghan and the children did not deserve security, as they did with Harry – before leaking details of his planned visits to the media. They do not do this with ANY of the other high profile people whose security they are tasked with managing. It is highly unprofessional and deeply dangerous.
None of this information should have been in the public domain, and I am pleased to see the army veteran MP from Dover call them out on social media, and stating on the record that the absence of official protection for the family after three weeks needs to be investigated, and that protection should be based on RISK.
💯 % none of this should be leaked to anyone but especially to the tabloid press and media.
It’s Catch 22. Give us all the details of your daily life so we can review your security. But everything you provide will be immediately leaked to the gutter press.
Yep if that guy with the punchable face, Clive Addertounge, knows all the deets those will go straight to Baldemort and his lackey Knauf, and they’ll sell them to the highest bidder.
Yeah, that’s a 🚩🚩🚩🚩🚩
I just feel badly for the kids. First a big move and new school, now a change so soon thereafter. I’m sure their parents are doing everything they can to provide stability, but that’s just hard. Hopefully no more changes will be necessary.
Change is part of life. Parents moved by choice and needs. Kids get moved all the time. Stability isn’t just about staying in one place. It’s about the family unit and so many other factors. And even if you make all the right decisions for your kids, there’s no guarantee.
I often wonder if anxiety about this family is more about us than about them. I hope people will consider many other families uprooted violently due to natural catastrophes or man made ones and compare the amount of continuous and sustained press and attention and emotional involvement given to the BRF! This comparison depresses me. The coverage of the Nepali China border flooding faded and world’s attention moved on. Same with the millions at risk of starvation and facing great deprivation in parts of the world— hardly a nod these days. It’s just accepted.
I guess these people are truly special. Far more worthy than us.
This doesn’t sound like Ravec had anything to do with the school switch. It was their private security team which apparently never vetted the route to school at the appropriate time of day and was surprised by the heavy traffic disrupting the convoy. After all of Harry’s focus and concern for his family’s security, this is a major oversight which undermines the narrative that the move was carefully planned and not at all impulsive.
Agree.
And it shocks me that the RAVEC review was only going to be for Harry. They are not including Meghan which I don’t see as a good thing. Ten bucks they say she doesn’t get security.
It was announced that Meghan is getting a risk assessment.
Inspite of my advanced age🤣, I am familiar with the chaos of the school run, having been the full time caretaker of my great niece and nephew when they began school before the pandemic hit. I don’t know how they would ever be able to avoid a bottleneck at the drop off site itself. My understanding is that the problem occurred on the route to the school rather than at the school. This could have been checked before school even began. And I agree that none of these details should even be published.
This is beyond awful. Are the poor kids going to be trapped inside with home tutors?
Only in the mind of some. But I agree that’s an awful way of thinking.
Better to get out, enjoy the day or night and live your own life better.
Easy to say when you don’t have a whole bunch of nutjobs wishing and possibly plotting harm to you and yours. The BRF and the BM have done their jobs well — the Sussexes are hated by many.
Which is why it’s good to take a break. It’s good to check oneself.
That’s why I post that it’s unhealthy to lose perspective. This type of emotional investment needs to be balanced. That’s why I am cautious and don’t forget what else goes on in my world and the bigger world beyond that of the BRF. That’s why it’s good to remember there are many many families out there who are dealing with real catastrophe, lacking shelter or safety of any kind. It’s not the stuff the tabloids or serious press devote sustained coverage on. Even natural catastrophes with gruesome images that get the press excited last a week in the news. Very transient stuff.
But royal soap operas are the press’ lifeblood these days. Less facts. More fan fiction. Way easier and cheaper to produce. Bread and circuses indeed.
I also want to say while people don’t need to share personal stories here, I will bet there are people here who have been subjected to abuse, violence, stalked, harassed, bullied, and worse. I’m cognizant of that reality.
This made me really sad. Choosing a school requires so much attention to so many different factors, and I’m guessing those factors are multiplied for the Sussexes.
The school the kids are in now was clearly not their first choice. I hope it works out for the kids.
I agree with Kaiser: I wish they had stayed in Montecito, where every move they made was not so fraught with peril and media attention.
Given that they didn’t, I guess that all that’s left now is to hope that Ravec realizes that this family needs protection. If something happens to them, Charles’ reign will be over. I think even that dogshit father knows that.
If he really believed that, he would give Harry and family security. I think he intends to ride out Harry’s death the same way he did Diana’s. I think he’s counting on the press to either exonerate him or take the blame for him. It’s worked before.
I don’t even think he cares about his so called legacy. He’s very much “apres moi les deluge”, burn it all after I’m gone. The queen was much more interested in preserving the monarchy
I still don’t understand why they went back. All this stress must have been expected. So why are they doing it?
Right here with you. I don’t get it. It’s been three weeks and just as chaotic as we’d all imagined. If Meghan promised him a year, I have to wonder if she’s rethinking it.
I kind of see this as a mutual test of trust and unfortunately their security has been so politicised it’s almost impossible for them to take advice without a jaundiced eye but the problem is, if you’re asking for security, and you’re in the vetting stage, and the security staff tell you to change something, and you don’t change it, then they can deny your request. The reason is that they can’t provide half a solution. It’s another all or nothing sort of scenario. If you do things they advise against, yet you ask them to protect you, you’re putting them at risk, as well as yourself. Rather than accept that, they would probably just turn you down. So. This is kind of a test. If they take advice, they might be able to establish their bona fides with RAVEC. The trust works both ways. But RAVEC has been so leaky and unprofessional and absurdly amateurish, I’m amazed the Sussexes would take their advice. I would have probably just said, the hell with it, and ploughed on.
Ploughed on to where? Your own and your children’s demise?
The Sussexes are already in a real jam here if they are banking on the possibility of “help” that is reluctant at best and malignant at worst.
So then what’s a better solution? I also don’t understand why the home office won’t intervene to challenge RAVEC’s dirty game
Despite the way the press uses the terms Security Review and Risk Assessment are not interchangeable. Making these terms seem interchangeable is how the Palace’s role is hidden, a risk assessment is 1 part of a Security Review. The BRF has no role in determining the risk level but they play a decisive role in the Security Review
Charles doesn’t deserve to be king of anything but a pile of guano.