William announces first public engagement since Kate Middleton's cancer diagnosis: Prince of Wales will visit food charity in Surrey and youth centre in west London on Thursday as the Princess continues recovery at home

Prince William today announced his first public engagements since news of his wife the Princess of Wales's cancer diagnosis nearly four weeks ago.

The Prince of Wales, who has spent the past three-and-a-half weeks with Kate and their children during the Easter holidays, will return to public work this Thursday. 

William, 41, will visit Surrey and West London to 'spotlight the community and environmental impact organisations in the area are having through their work'.

The Prince will first visit the Surplus to Supper charity to see how surplus food is delivered, sorted and re-packaged for delivery to community organisations.

He will then visit a youth centre in the capital which receives regular deliveries of surplus food from the charity, and hear how this helps the young people it supports.

William last attended a public engagement at an event tackling homelessness in Sheffield on March 19 - three days before Kate's cancer revelation on March 22. 

The announcement comes on the day that William's sister-in-law Meghan Markle launched the first product from her new business venture American Riviera Orchard in California, sending influencers and friends a jar of branded strawberry jam.

April 11 -- Prince William and Prince George watch Aston Villa v Lille at Villa Park last Thursday

March 22 -- Kate reveals in a video that she is undergoing preventative chemotherapy

A Kensington Palace spokesman said: 'Reducing food waste has a considerable number of environmental benefits, including reducing emissions from landfill that contribute to climate change.

'Protecting the environment for future generations is one of The Prince of Wales's key priorities and in 2020 he launched The Earthshot Prize, a global environmental prize and platform to discover, award, celebrate and scale ground-breaking solutions to repair and regenerate the planet.

'In 2021, The City of Milan won an Earthshot Prize in the 'Build a Waste-Free World' category for its innovative Food Hubs that collect excess food and distribute it to the communities who need it.'

It comes after William and his son Prince George attended an Aston Villa match together last Thursday in their first public outing since Kate's cancer announcement.

The Prince was seen smiling and applauding in the Villa Park stands during the club's 2-1 win against Lille in the first leg of the Europa Conference League quarter-final. 

March 19 -- Prince William is pictured during a visit to the Millennium Gallery in Sheffield

March 11 -- William and Kate are seen leaving Windsor together as they are driven in a car 

William also posted a message congratulating the Lionesses' Rachel Daly on her retirement on the Prince and Princess of Wales social media accounts last week.

On March 22, the Princess of Wales, 42, revealed she is undergoing treatment for cancer in an emotional video message.

She, the Prince of Wales and their three children, all missed the Easter Sunday service at St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle, following the announcement, despite attending last year.

The family spent the Easter holiday together as they adjusted to Kate's diagnosis, which was discovered in post-operative tests after major abdominal surgery.

In the message revealing the diagnosis last month, Kate said: 'This of course came as a huge shock, and William and I have been doing everything we can to process and manage this privately for the sake of our young family. As you can imagine, this has taken time.

March 10 -- A Mother's Day photo of Kate with Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis, which was released by Kensington Palace. Kate later apologised for editing the image

December 25, 2023 -- Kate was last seen at a royal event attending church at Sandringham

'It has taken me time to recover from major surgery in order to start my treatment.

'But, most importantly, it has taken us time to explain everything to George, Charlotte and Louis in a way that is appropriate for them, and to reassure them that I am going to be OK.'

Since revealing the diagnosis, the Prince and Princess of Wales are said to be 'enormously touched' and 'extremely moved' by the public's warmth and support.

The King, who has been carrying out low-key official duties behind palace walls, made his most significant public appearance at the Easter Sunday service since his own cancer diagnosis was announced at the start of February.

He was described by the palace as being 'so proud' of the princess for her courage in speaking out and is said to be in 'the closest contact with his beloved daughter-in-law'.