Kate Middleton wore an M&S dress for a school assembly (and you can still buy it)

(Image credit: 2020 Kensington Palace)

Yesterday the Duchess of Cambridge led an online school assembly for the Oak National Academy, in which she spoke about the importance of kindness and mental wellbeing among children.

For the occasion, she wore a dress by British high-street favourite Marks & Spencer, which is actually still available to buy, a very rare occurrence due to the 'Kate effect'.

The frilly dress is inspired by 'country gardens with this cabbage-print dress', and its slightly puffed sleeves and elasticated waist add structure to its breezy shape, whilst the midi length is universally flattering, though of course we could only see the top half in Kate's Zoom call.

Shop now: Printed Yoke Midi Waisted Dress for £39.50 from M&S

Interestingly, when you look at the Duchess' previous Zoom calls, she has worn a lot of blue, so I'm guessing it could well be one of her favourite colours, or simply another nod to the NHS, though that would've taken a lot of pre-planning, which she probably wouldn't have had the time to do, with looking after her children in lockdown, and working on her various projects.

Whichever her reason, she looks radiant as always.

Penny Goldstone

Penny Goldstone is the Contributing Fashion Editor at Marie Claire UK. She writes about catwalk trends and the latest high street and Instagram sartorial must-haves. She also helms the Women Who Win franchise.

She has worked in fashion for over 10 years, contributing to publications such as Cosmopolitan, Red, Good Housekeeping, and Stylist.