The Duke and Duchess of Sussex are to have their own household to take forward their growing roles as senior members of the royal family.

Meghan and Harry’s new household will be based at Buckingham Palace and is likely to be created following the birth of their first baby, expected in April.

The move will see the Sussexes and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge formally split their backroom staff and may signal a shift in the direction of their public works.

But the foursome remain joint patrons of the Royal Foundation, which is their primary charitable body, and could still work together on big projects like their Heads Together mental health campaign.

Royals attends Christmas Day Church service
The brothers are still expected to work closely together (Joe Giddens/PA)

Harry and Meghan have appointed Sara Latham, a public relations heavyweight and former senior adviser on Hillary Clinton’s 2016 US presidential campaign, as their head of communications.

She also worked in the White House under Bill Clinton in the late 1990s when he was American president and was a special adviser to the late Dame Tessa Jowell when she was culture secretary.

Buckingham Palace announced the development in a statement: “The Queen has agreed to the creation of a new Household for The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, following their marriage in May last year.

William and Harry
William and Harry during a Heads Together charity event in 2017 (PA)

“The Household, which will be created with the support of The Queen and The Prince of Wales, will be established in the spring.

“The Duke of Sussex currently has his own private office, which has been supporting the Duchess since Their Royal Highness’s engagement in November 2017.

“This long-planned move will ensure that permanent support arrangements for The Duke and Duchess’s work are in place as they start their family and move to their official residence at Frogmore Cottage.”

The announcement of the new household is a natural development in the life of senior royals and facilitates their need to have their own staff and aides around them as they pursue their public goals.

Jason Knauf
Jason Knauf will stay working with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge (PA)

William and Harry split from their father the Prince of Wales’s household when they came of age and it was always expected the brothers would set up their own separate operations when the time came.

The Sussexes and Cambridges’ current communications head Jason Knauf will stay with William and Kate but become their senior adviser.

His responsibilities will include advising on their charitable initiatives – including work on the environment, mental health, and early childhood – and supporting a review of the charitable structures that underpin their work.