William and Kate share birthday photograph of Prince Louis as he starts nursery

22 April 2021, 22:30 | Updated: 23 April 2021, 10:28

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have shared a new photograph of Prince Louis ahead of his third birthday.

The photograph, which shows Louis shortly before he left for his first day at nursery school, was taken by Kate in the grounds of Kensington Palace on Wednesday.

Louis is attending Willcocks Nursery School, where his big sister, Princess Charlotte, also went.

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Wearing a jumper, shirt, shorts and with his rucksack on his back, he has a smile on his face as he grips the handlebars of his bicycle.

The Cambridges' youngest child celebrates his third birthday on Friday.

The two-week period of royal mourning following the death of the Duke of Edinburgh ends on Friday allowing the Cambridges to release the image.

The young prince was featured in a picture released in tribute to his great-grandfather, showing Philip and the Queen surrounded by their great grandchildren at Balmoral - with the monarch holding Louis.

Kate is a keen and accomplished amateur photographer, who in 2017 accepted a lifetime honorary membership of the Royal Photographic Society which recognised her "talent and enthusiasm".

She regularly releases images of her children to mark important occasions like birthdays and other major milestones.

Willcocks has been described in reports as having a loyal following of "old English families and chic foreigners" and is something of a "hidden gem" in the shadow of the Royal Albert Hall.

The nursery received positive praise from Ofsted when it was inspected in January 2020 and was rated outstanding.

The school charges fees of £3,400 per term for children attending what it calls morning school and £2,250 per term for those enrolled for the afternoon.

Louis is fifth in line to the throne and was born on St George's Day, April 23, 2018, at the private Lindo Wing of St Mary's Hospital in Paddington, London, weighing 8lb 7oz.

At 11 weeks old he was christened Louis Arthur Charles by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, at the Chapel Royal in St James's Palace.

The young prince has rarely been seen in public - his most prominent outing during the past 12 months was when he joined his parents and siblings at a special pantomime performance at London's Palladium Theatre last winter.