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Prince William and Harry split Diana Fund as brothers part ways

Prince William and Harry split Diana Fund as brothers part ways

The Duke of Cambridge and Duke of Sussex have agreed to split their mother’s memorial fund between them as they finalise details of their separate working lives.

Details of a signed official agreement, between the Royal Foundation of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and the now-defunct Sussex Royal Foundation, see the Diana Fund divided between the brothers’ independent charitable activities.

For years, they have used the fund to benefit her legacy through their joint passions.

Prince William and Prince Harry work together in 2018 - AFP
Prince William and Prince Harry work together in 2018 - AFP

The new arrangement forms part of the final settlement between the Cambridges and Sussexes as they divide their working lives.

In 2013, Prince William and Harry - then working together on the Royal Foundation - agreed to take joint control of the fund to protect its name and see its future income used for good causes.

The Fund received £21,346 in 2019, holding steady from £21,583 in 2018.

Princess Diana with her sons, William and Harry - Getty
Princess Diana with her sons, William and Harry - Getty

New accounts from the Foundation, detailing the financial activities of the last year, state that as of December 2019, future funds would be divided equally between the late Princess of Wales’ two sons to spend on their now independent philanthropic interests.

The Sussexes, now based in Los Angeles, have closed their fledging Sussex Royal organisation in the UK, focusing instead on the US-based “non-profit” Archewell.

The Royal Foundation annual report states: “On 18 December 2019, an agreement was signed with the Sussex Royal Foundation by which The Royal Foundation intended to grant half of the net future proceeds received by the Diana Fund to Sussex Royal.

“In March 2020 The Duke and Duchess of Sussex announced that they would no longer be operating Sussex Royal as their primary philanthropic vehicle in the UK and accordingly their share of the net income will instead be donated to another charity of The Duke of Sussex's choosing.”

Princes Harry and William discuss their mother during a documentary to remember her in 2017 - ITV 
Princes Harry and William discuss their mother during a documentary to remember her in 2017 - ITV

A spokesman for the Duke of Sussex said his half would be donated to Sentebale, the charity he set up in memory of his mother to support children affected by HIV in Lesotho and Botswana.

The funds will not go to Archewell or Travalyst Limited, his private company based on eco-travel, because neither are UK-registered charities.

The report also notes that Sussex Royal received £145,000 to fund its set-up and launch, with a further £100,000 to Travalyst.

Noting that "following a review into the structure of The Royal Foundation, the Duke and Duchess of Sussex decided to leave the charity in order to set up their own philanthropic organisation", the report confirms that several of their projects - particularly Meghan's work with the Hubb Community Kitchen and Prince Harry's on youth violence - will remain with the organisation.

Prince Harry during a visit to Sentebale in 2014 - ITV
Prince Harry during a visit to Sentebale in 2014 - ITV

Others, including Coach Core and Endeavour, will become independent charities or move to the separate Invictus Games Foundation.

In highlights of the year, the report includes the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge's inaugural King's Cup regatta, the sailing event in which Prince George and Princess Charlotte joined their parents for a day of fun on the Isle of Wight, raised £490,000 to be split between seven charities.

Amy Pickerill, the Duchess of Sussex’s former assistant private secretary, joined the Royal Foundation in April as director of the Earthshot Prize, the Duke of Cambridge’s next major conservation project.

On the Royal Foundation's work to come this year, chairman Sir Keith Mills said of the need to focus on the response to Covid-19: "The Royal Foundation is committed to playing its part in the national response to this crisis– whether that be through supporting those on the front line of responding to the outbreak in the UK, or stepping up our activity in the mental health space to ensure that support is there for those who need it."

Watch the latest episode from Yahoo UK's The Royal Story