Prince William shares some big news

Prince William has shared some big news, announcing his plans to train as a volunteer counsellor for text crisis service Shout.

Shout's new 'BLUELIGHT' function will connect members of the emergency services community to trained volunteers who can help them navigate during times of trouble.

"I'm aiming to set myself up for it, I really want to do it," the Duke of Cambridge said. "Even if I can only do an hour on my laptop. I want to do the training and be able to help."

William, 37, announced his partnership with the service on Monday. It was developed by the Royal Foundation as part of the Cambridges' 'Heads Together' mental health support campaign.

The father of three shared the news on Emergency Services Day in the UK, speaking to emergency responders at Harcombe House in Devon — one of three UK residental centres run by The Fire Fighters' Charity.

William used to work in emergency services as a helicopter rescue worker. He joined the east Anglian Air Ambulance service in 2015, after serving for nearly five years as a helicopter pilot with the RAF's Search and Rescue Force, piloting operational missions until his retirement from the job in 2017.

Following the announcement, the Duke spoke with retired firefighters about their mental health struggles resulting from their work before staying for an art therapy session, reports HELLO!

"What I always find with the blue light community is that you put the hat and the uniform on day in day out and you see whole families being torn apart," he said. "You try and compartmentalise, you try not to bring it back to your own family but after a while one or two jobs catch up with you. "We are not robots and, if you are in the emergency services for long enough, you see really distressing things. All that weighs upon you, and if you have something going on at home - family, illness - it all gets on top of you, too many things to keep a lid on."

WIlliam spoke with retired firefighter Richard Baldwin, 70, and his wife Susan, as well as serving firefighter Dan Bills, his wife Kelly and their three children.

He asked Baldwin about what it was like to work in the job in 1968, saying, "Mental health wasn't a thing, was it?"

"It's changed in the last 10 years. If you went to an incident that was difficult it was barely spoken about," Bills, 35, answered.

"People don't hesitate now, there's no shame now."

While admiring artwork by Bills' children Joshua, 12, Mia, seven, and Isla, three, William spotted a unicorn horn made from colourful balls and commented: "My daughter loves unicorns. Loves them. Very cool." (This certainly explains why Princess Charlotte had a sequinned unicorn keyring attached to her school bag last week.)

Bills later described Prince William as "pleasant, down to earth" and "humble", revealing that he and his family began attending the centre after struggling with son Joshua's autism diagnoses for the past eight years.

Baldwin suffers from PTSD after serving in the Berkshire Fire Service for two decades. He uses a wheelchair after having both legs amputated due to illness.

After meeting the Duke, he said: "You can tell he's a family man, he's a natural. What a gentleman. I never thought I would have to show the future King of England my legs!"

"If you don't speak out, nobody is going to know. The things you see, the things you do. They do a fabulous job here."

William also spoke with John Couzins, 66, who was exercising on an anti-gravity treadmill as part of his recovery from knee surgery.

"It's really good to have him here with what's going on at the moment. We have still got a royal family doing their bit and trying to understand what's going on with the ordinary person," Couzins told reporters.