Prince Harry and Meghan Markle have moved their kids across the pond but, a royal expert says they failed to think through one of the most basic parts of their new life in the UK: getting them to school.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex pulled Prince Archie, 7, and Princess Lilibet, 5, from their new school just two days into the term after their security team determined that the daily commute was too difficult to manage safely amid heavy traffic.
But royal expert Kinsey Schofield exclusively told Page Six the traffic headache was hardly a surprise — and should have been factored in before the kids ever set foot on campus.
“None of these logistical problems are a surprise,” Schofield said. “When I was speaking to people locally about the original school, one of the first things I was warned about was the horrific traffic.”
Hello! Magazine reported Monday that Harry, 41, and Meghan, 45, made the decision to pull their children from the school just two days into the term over safety concerns raised by their security team.
Traffic in the area, combined with the distance between the school and the family’s home, put their private security team under strain, according to the outlet.
“I was told you need the patience of a saint to navigate that area during the school run,” Schofield explained. “Then you factor in the distance from where the Sussexes are currently staying and the different schedules for two children of different ages, and this meant making that 45-minute journey four times a day.”
“This is another example of Harry and Meghan appearing to choose the more complicated route and then discovering that the complications are difficult to manage,” Schofield added.
The timing is also raising eyebrows, particularly given the couple’s long-running battle over security arrangements in the UK.
Harry has argued for years that his family requires greater protection when in Britain, and his legal fight over taxpayer-funded security has remained a major point of contention after his family returned across the pond.
“I also think there will inevitably be some cynicism around the timing,” Schofield says.
“Harry has spent years making the case that his family requires a greater level of security in Britain, and suddenly a very foreseeable school-run problem is being presented as another example of why their existing security arrangements are inadequate.”
A second expert tells Page Six the decision may simply reflect genuine concern for the children.
“It seems that Harry and Meghan have genuine concern about the safety of their children,” says Ryan McCormick, crisis communications expert at Goldman McCormick PR. “Because of who they are, everything that they do is met with speculation and heightened scrutiny.”
Schofield, however, says the practical problems should have been apparent from the start.
“If locals could immediately identify the traffic and distance as potential problems, why couldn’t a professional security operation identify them before the first day of school?” she asks.
The Sussexes have since moved quickly to get the children settled at another school.
The school snafu comes just one day after Meghan shared a series of intimate family videos on Instagram, offering a picture-perfect glimpse at their new life in Britain.
Schofield, however, questions the timing of the posts.
“Was the post intended to get ahead of this story?” she asks. “Given how carefully Harry and Meghan manage their public image, I think it is fair to ask.”
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