Kate Middleton Was Spotted Touring a London School, Fueling Speculation That Prince George Won’t Go to Eton After All

The ongoing saga over where Prince George will attend school got yet another chapter this weekend, amid new reports that Kate Middleton was seen touring at least one elite day school in London recently.

According to the Daily Mail, the Princess of Wales was definitely seen at University College School (UCS) in Hampstead shortly after the £10,000-a-term school closed for Christmas break in December.

The outlet also reported that, the same week, Highgate School, another elite London school that is apparently located just two miles away from UCS, was closed for a "special VIP visitor" that's rumored to have been Kate.

George, 11, currently attends Lambrook School in Berkshire with his younger siblings, Princess Charlotte, 9, and Prince Louis, 6, and the decision about where to send him when he leaves his current school (which will happen in 18 months, according to the Daily Mail) has reportedly been a source of tension between Kate and her husband, Prince William.

The Prince and Princess of Wales have reportedly argued about the decision for years, and sources claim it's been a debate between William's alma mater, the prestigious all-boys school Eton College, and Marlborough College, a co-ed school which all three of the Middleton siblings attended.

Over the years, there have been conflicting reports about which of his parents' alma maters George would attend. In October 2023, OK reported that Will and Kate had “argued about it for years,” and that Will had "finally won" thanks to George himself, who reported “wants to be just like his father" and attend Eton.

Just a month later, however, a source told LifeStyle that Marlborough had won and that, eventually, all three of the Wales children would attend the school.

"This way, George and Charlotte will have a few years where they’ll overlap at the same school," the source claimed. "Kate has fond memories of her time there and feels it’s a better fit for her children."

Ultimately, the Eton vs. Marlborough debate has always been a battle of boarding schools—which could be why Kate is exploring other options now.

A source told the Daily Mail that sending George to a day school in London would be an "unexpected choice," but one that would be understandable given Kate's battle with cancer last year.

"With the year Catherine has had, she may well have thought to herself that she wants to soak up every drop of George’s childhood and tuck him into bed herself each night," the source said of why Will and Kate might consider changing the plan (whatever it's been behind-the-scenes) for their oldest son's education.

Opting not to send George to a boarding school at all would be in line with Will and Kate's ongoing efforts to modernize to the monarchy (especially when it comes to parenting), according to former BBC royal correspondent Jennie Bond, who said it would be "sad" if the couple sent their children to boarding school at all.

“They have been the model of a modern monarchy so far, and I would like to see them continue as a tight family unit, with the children coming home each day after school,” Bond said.

As the outlet notes, however, the visits could be unrelated to George's education plans and instead part of Kate's work with the Royal Foundation, so we'll still have to wait and see where the Wales children ultimately attend school.