Prince Harry jokes with kids and meets school dog on visit to a tree-planting project

Prince Harry set down the roots of a new tree as he spent the afternoon bonding with children at a London school.

As part of a royal initiative to highlight the importance of trees to the environment, the Duke of Sussex joined youngsters at St Vincent’s Primary School, in Acton, to take part in a tree planting project.

Year Five pupils at the west London school took part in the project with Harry, in support of the Queen's Commonwealth Canopy (QCC) initiative.

Dozens of schoolboys and girls gathered in the playground to greet the duke, weeks before he is set to become a father himself for the first time.

Harry also stroked the school's adorable white dog during his visit, which was being held by one of the boys.

Harry was given two presents by the children and lifted the wrapped present to his ear to guess what it was before opening it upon his arrival at the school.

He was also handed a bouquet of flowers by a young girl.

After meeting with school ambassadors, the duke planted his tree alongside Year 5 pupils who placed saplings in the outdoor area, to grow a forest school.

The QCC, launched in 2015 along with the Woodland Trust, has provided 74,000 trees across the UK, as well as 8.4 million hectares of forests in 43 countries, dedicated to the Queen's service to the Commonwealth.

The Woodland Trust is the largest woodland conservation charity in the UK, with over 500,000 supporters and more than 1,000 sites.