The Duke of
Cambridge will ensure he is ready to rush to wife Kate's bedside as the birth
of the royal couple's second child approaches.
Prince William
is currently training for his new job as a helicopter pilot with East Anglian
Air Ambulance - but he will never be more than two hours away in case he needs
to dash back to London.
The duke and
duchess still do not know if Prince George's sibling - which Kate has said is
due in the second half of April - will be a boy or a girl, according to a royal
source.
The couple are
planning to return to the Lindo Wing, the private maternity department of St
Mary's Hospital in Paddington where Prince George was born, for the birth.
But contingency
plans are in place for hospitals in Norfolk or Berkshire in case Kate goes into
labour outside London, according to Sky sources.
The duke will
take two weeks paternity leave and join his family at Kensington Palace
immediately after the birth, where they will spend a few days before travelling
to Anmer Hall, their Norfolk home.
The royal
source said: "The Duke and Duchess are hugely grateful for the warm wishes
they have received from people throughout the UK and indeed around the world
and over the last few months.
"They know
that people are excited that Prince George will soon have a little brother or
sister, it means a great deal to them that so many will be celebrating this
important moment for their family and sharing their excitement."
The delivery
team will be led by Guy Thorpe-Beeston, surgeon gynaecologist to the Royal
Household, who is a consultant obstetrician and gynaecologist at the Chelsea
and Westminster Hospital.
The birth of
the child will be announced on the official Kensington Palace Twitter account
and also in the traditional manner - with a royal bulletin displayed in
Buckingham Palace's forecourt on the same ornate easel used when George was
born.
But the news of
a new prince or princess is unlikely to be announced overnight as the Queen and
members of both families will have to be informed first.
The Duke and
Duchess have a live-in Spanish nanny, Maria Teresa Turrion Borrallo, to help
with childcare and it is understood they have no plans to hire more staff to
help with looking after their family.
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