Cumbria scouts surprise visit from Princess Kate at Windermere

Scouts were “jumping up and down with excitement” when they were treated to a surprise visit from the Princess of Wales, their leader has said.

Princess Kate met the group from Cumbria’s 1st Ulverston Scouts, alongside chief scout Dwayne Fields and scouts from Greater Manchester, while making a short film to promote the importance of spending time in nature.

The film, released by Kensington Palace, was filmed last month at Windermere in the Lake District.

Leader of 1st Ulverston Scouts Harry Mitchell said: “We knew we were going to meet Dwayne Fields, but it wasn’t until halfway through they day we were told we were actually meeting Her Royal Highness.”

He told BBC Radio Cumbria: “[The scouts] were all really, really excited.

“We had a couple jumping up and down with excitement, one shed a tear.”

Mr Mitchell said the Princess, who has been joint president of the Scouts since 2020, had been “very down to earth”, leading a challenge for the group to earn their naturalist badges.

He said: “She loved speaking to the scouts about what they get up to in their own time, what skills they’re learning, how they interact with nature and how much time they spend outside.

“She’s the one that presented them with the naturalist badge at the end of the day,” he added.

Mr Mitchell said the promotion of the scouting movement was “really important” for young people.

“They come in as really shy 10-year-olds and they leave as quite confident 14-year-olds with outdoor skills and also people skills.”

In the film, the Princess, who is in remission from cancer, said spending time in nature gave her a “sense of peace” in a “very busy world”.

Mr Fields, who became chief scout in 2024, said of the film: “In an increasingly complex world digital technology has its place, but the few hours we spent in the hills without screens was magical.”

“We are often at our best in the outdoors, and I want more young people to experience outdoor adventures like this for themselves,” he added.