The Princess of Wales has shared a picture of herself as a baby, smiling and reaching for her father’s face.

“Faces are a baby’s best toy,” Kate, 41, wrote on the Kensington Palace Twitter feed, alongside the image which has the description “with Dad, by Mum”.

She is shown as a baby wearing a summer dress in a photograph with her father Michael Middleton, taken by her mother Carole.

Kate released the image after she launched her Shaping Us campaign on Tuesday to raise awareness of the vital role early years play in shaping the rest of people’s lives.

In a series of tweets, she said: “This weekend, we’d love for you all to spend time with your friends, families, colleagues and communities talking about your early childhoods and how they’ve shaped your lives.

“I hope you’ll also consider joining me in sharing a picture of yourselves before your fifth birthday to help with those conversations and to share some smiles and memories too.”

She signed off the messages with her initial, C.

Princess of Wales launches childhood campaign – but faces calls for investment not ‘awareness’

Kate is embarking on her life’s work and will hope the focus is on what she does, and not what she wears

Princess of Wales aims to ‘shine a spotlight’ on the importance of early childhood in new campaign

Several people replied to her tweets with pictures of themselves as children with their parents.

Kate said her early years campaign goes beyond “raising kids” and is also about “shaping our society” and creating a “more nurturing world”.

Speaking to radio presenter Roman Kemp, Kate said highlighting the importance of early childhood was not about putting “extra pressure” on parents but saying they needed “help reprioritising family life”.

Kate is embarking on her life’s work and will hope the focus is on what she does, and not what she wears

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The Shaping Us initiative is aimed at raising the profile of the crucial period of a child’s development from pregnancy to the age of five.

It is supported by a number of famous people including rapper Professor Green, presenter Fearne Cotton, former The Saturdays singer Rochelle Humes and Lionesses’ captain Leah Williamson.

Speaking to Kemp, the princess said: “This isn’t just about raising kids.

“It’s about shaping our futures, shaping our society, creating a happier, healthier, more nurturing world for us all to live in.”

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