Photo: Britain’s Prince Harry greets Trevor Rose, head of the Community Recording Studio (CRS), a grassroots institution providing opportunities for young people, during a visit to CRS, in Nottingham, Britain, September 9, 2025. © REUTERS/Phil Noble
Prince Harry Steps Up Global Support for Children Affected by Violence and War
Since stepping back from official royal duties in 2020, Harry has channelled his public platform into global philanthropy. Across the UK, Ukraine, and beyond, the Duke of Sussex has remained committed to supporting the lives of children whose lives have been torn apart by violence, conflict, and tragedy.
During a visit to Nottingham, his first trip back to Britain in five months and one of his most high-profile trips since stepping down from royal duties in 2020, Harry announced a personal donation of £1.1 million ($1.49 million) to BBC Children in Need. The gift, one of the largest individual contributions ever publicly disclosed by a member of the royal family, will help fund youth projects in communities blighted by knife crime and violence.
“Violence impacting young people, particularly knife crime, continues to devastate lives, cut futures short, and leave families in grief,” Harry said, emphasizing that while his donation was significant, real change requires collective action from governments, police, schools, and businesses. “I’ve been committed to this work for over a decade, and sadly, the urgency today is even greater than when I first began. We cannot, and must not, and will not look away.”
For Harry, Nottingham carries special significance. It was the first city he and Meghan visited in an official capacity eight years ago, and he declared it would always hold “a permanent place in [his] heart.”
As well, through his Archewell Foundation, he and Meghan announced $500,000 in grants to support children injured in Gaza and Ukraine. The funding includes $200,000 to the World Health Organization for medical evacuations from Gaza to Jordan, $150,000 to Save the Children for humanitarian support in Gaza, and $150,000 to the Centre for Blast Injury Studies (CIS) at Imperial College London, advancing prosthetic technology for child amputees.
“Gaza now has the highest density of child amputees in the world and in history,” Harry noted in a statement. “It takes partnerships across government, science, medicine, humanitarian response, and advocacy to ensure children survive and can recover after blast injuries. No single organization can solve this alone.”
The CIS, an institution Harry helped open in 2013, highlighted that children are seven times more likely to die from blast injuries than adults, which makes this work that much more impactful, especially for a parent and Veteran like Harry. The Duke spent 10 years in the British military, during which he served two tours in Afghanistan. He has made campaigning for veterans a priority, founding the Invictus Games for military personnel wounded in action.
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WHO Chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said of Harry’s involvement: “I’m really pleased about what he’s doing, especially for the children of Gaza. It’s not the money, it’s also the passion and commitment I think I see.”
During a visit to Kyiv, Ukraine, Harry met veterans and expressed solidarity with the country’s wounded soldiers. In Kharkiv, dozens of military amputees gathered for the Games for Heroes, a biannual sporting event.
Small groups of men fitted with prosthetics competed in endurance events, cheered on by fellow amputees and volunteers. The Games, launched in 2015, have grown as the war drags on. There is, of course, tragedy in this growth, but it strengthens the mission behind the Games, which is to make amputees believe in themselves and feel that no obstacles are insurmountable.
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According to 28-year-old Alex Pivniev, who lost his leg in 2016, this mission has real impact.
“I love these games,” he said. “I love to see the guys who I fought with; what they are doing and how they are developing.”
(Source: Reuters)
