Prince William and Kate Middleton’s Nanny is Reportedly Banned from Using This Common Word

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published 20 August 2022

As the Cambridges—Prince William, Kate Middleton, Prince George, Princess Charlotte, and Prince Louis—depart Kensington Palace for their “modest” (a term used loosely) four-bedroom new home in Windsor, their beloved nanny, Maria Borrallo, will not be living with them anymore.

Borrallo—a longtime fixture with the Cambridges who was trained at the famous Norland College—was hired by William and Kate when George was just a few months old and has faithfully served the family ever since. (Just because she isn’t living with the family doesn’t mean her time with the Cambridges is ending, we should point out.) The Mirror reports that Borrallo has become “a massive helping hand and has settled well into royal family life.” But, the outlet reports, there is one word that, thanks to her training, Borrallo is banned from saying whenever she’s around George, Charlotte, and Louis, and it’s one that might surprise you.

Borrallo’s strict training, according to author Louise Heren, would have taught her to never utter the word “kids” around the Cambridge kids—errr, children. Instead, the trio should always be referred to as children, or by their names.

“The word ‘kid’ is banned,” Heren tells The Mirror. “It’s a mark of respect for the children as individuals.”

That’s but one rule laid down in the Cambridge household. Another? No shouting. A source told The Sun “shouting is absolutely off limits for the children, and any hint of shouting at each other is dealt with by removal.”

Borrallo and the three Cambridge children (don’t want to break any rules here) are soon to experience change, as, for the first time in their lives, Borrallo won’t be living with them. The four bedrooms in their new Windsor home will go to each of the three children, and William and Kate. According to The Telegraph, Borrallo no longer living with the family full-time will represent a “significant change,” even though she will reportedly be kept on full-time, living elsewhere alongside other staff that previously lived with the Cambridges, including a housekeeper and a chef.

Borrallo will surely be part of transitioning George, Charlotte, and Louis into their new school this fall, which is reported to be Lambrook School in Berkshire, where the three children will be day pupils.

Rachel Burchfield is a writer, editor, and podcaster whose primary interests are fashion and beauty, society and culture, and, most especially, the British Royal Family and other royal families around the world. She serves as Marie Claire’s Senior Celebrity and Royals Editor and has also contributed to publications like Allure, Cosmopolitan, Elle, Glamour, Harper’s Bazaar, InStyle, People, Vanity Fair, Vogue, and W, among others. Before taking on her current role with Marie Claire, Rachel served as its Weekend Editor and later Royals Editor. She is the cohost of Podcast Royal, a show that was named a top five royal podcast by The New York Times. A voracious reader and lover of books, Rachel also hosts I’d Rather Be Reading, which spotlights the best current nonfiction books hitting the market and interviews the authors of them. Rachel frequently appears as a media commentator, and she or her work has appeared on outlets like NBC’s Today Show, ABC’s Good Morning America, CNN, and more.