Catherine and Prince William visit repurposed church in South Belfast amid surprise visit

William and Catherine began their engagements at The Commons, a former church on Belfast's Ormeau Road that has been repurposed as a community hub focused on creativity, connection and belonging, where they met employers, support organisations and young participants in the programme.

The couple will spend the day engaging with organisations, employers and young people who have benefited from the scheme, which pairs job placements with ongoing support and relationship-building.

The Prince and Princess of Wales arrive for a visit to The Commons in South Belfast

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Homewards, the Prince's five-year initiative aimed at making homelessness rare, brief and unrepeated, developed the Neon model as a practical tool for tackling the root causes of housing instability through employment.

Neon operates as a place-based, business-led network drawing together employers, employability services, public bodies and community partners around a jobs-first philosophy.

The programme was first trialled in Northern Ireland in 2025, serving as an initial test of whether a locally driven, employer-led model could prevent homelessness by getting young people into work.

Since its launch, seven employers have taken on 21 young people through the network, with Homewards facilitating the placements.

Their visit centres on the New Employment Opportunities Network, known as Neon, a pilot programme run through Homewards that connects vulnerable young people with sustainable work

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Beyond simply securing jobs, the initiative aims to help participants overcome barriers by building support networks, fostering independence and developing the confidence needed to maintain their roles long-term.

The Northern Ireland pilot has concentrated specifically on care-experienced young people, a group facing particularly acute obstacles to both stable employment and secure housing.

Statistics underscore the scale of the challenge: a quarter of care leavers in Northern Ireland are not engaged in education, employment or training, while roughly two-thirds find themselves homeless within a decade of leaving care.

The Princess of Wales wore a stunning tartan skirt for the occasion

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Catherine and Prince William stood inside the repurposed church

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It was precisely these stark realities that prompted the creation of Neon, which seeks to intervene before homelessness takes hold by providing a structured route into meaningful work alongside wraparound support.

The pilot's findings and practical lessons are now being used to shape local networks in four additional Homewards locations across the UK, with major national employers also committing to the approach.

Today's gathering in Belfast marks the first occasion that Neon Chairs from all Homewards sites have assembled alongside leading employers and frontline delivery partners to exchange insights and build on Northern Ireland's experience.