Kate Middleton and Prince William are giving great thought to how they raise the next generation of royals.
The Prince and Princess of Wales especially want to make the transition into royal duties as easy as possible for their eldest son and Prince William’s heir, Prince George, 10.
"William is trying to normalize it. They're not in denial and there’s a lot of thought being given to it, which was not always the case,” Robert Hardman, whose book The Making of a King: King Charles III and the Modern Monarchy is out now, tells PEOPLE exclusively.
"With George, there's a sense that the priority is that he and his siblings are not put off this, that it's not scary, that it's something that they understand and it’s going to be part of their life,” Hardman says. "And there’s a belief to make it as unobtrusive and as normal — if you can call it normal — and as pleasant as possible."
The author adds, “Crucially, it's both of them — William and Catherine.”
In addition to his duties as Prince of Wales, William, 41, feels that training his heir is paramount, Hardman writes in his book.
"In his view, it’s not far off the most important job he has – raising the next King," a family friend says in Making of a King.
King Charles' future was largely determined without his consultation, Hardman says.
"It was laid out for him. He was told by a committee, ‘You will do this.’ There was once a dinner, which involved the Prime Minister of the Archbishop of Canterbury and a few others, where it was decided that Charles would go to Trinity College, Cambridge and would then join the Royal Navy. And he was sort of informed afterward, this is what you are going to do,"
However, Prince William enjoyed a notable level of autonomy in selecting his university education, engaging with the armed forces and undertaking initial royal responsibilities — and he wants the same for his son.
"There is no expectation that any royal duties are going to kick in until George is well into his 20s," a Kensington Palace source says in the book. "Before he was even made a page at the coronation, William and Catherine wanted to ask him if he felt comfortable about it because he was clearly the youngest. It turned out he was keen."
While Queen Elizabeth took a major role in preparing Prince William for his future duties (William would visit his grandmother from his nearby school, Eton College, for afternoon teas and chats), the same shouldn't be expected from King Charles when it comes to guiding George.
“I think it's very much parents first,” Hardman says. “If he was asked to, he'd be delighted, but I think this is very much parent-driven. I suspect the time will come rather like that rather sweet rapport between the late Queen and Prince William, but I suspect not yet.”
Prince William made it clear that his duties as a husband and parent came first when Princess Kate underwent abdominal surgery last month. William took time out of the public eye during her recovery so he could help her and keep a normal schedule for Prince George, Princess Charlotte, 8, and Prince Louis, 5.
“We know they are a very tight family unit, and he wants to be there for them,” Hardman told PEOPLE. “So much of what they do with those kids is about normalizing life and not making them feel like they are in a special gilded cage."
“They are a modern royal couple," added Hardman. "There would have been more delegation [in the past]. He doesn’t want to leave it all to the nanny.”
But with King Charles, 75, also out of the spotlight as he receives cancer treatment, it's expected that Prince William will be the face of the monarchy along with Queen Camilla, 76.
“It is hard with Kate being ill as well, but he will step up,” said a source close to the royal household.
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