Lorraine Williamson
In a New Year Honours list packed with famous names, one of the most telling awards went to someone whose job is to be almost invisible. The Spanish royal nanny honoured this year is María Teresa Turrión Borallo, the long-standing caregiver for the Prince and Princess of Wales’ three children.
Turrión Borallo, originally from Palencia, has been awarded the Royal Victorian Medal (Silver) for her personal service to the family — a rare public nod to a role built on discretion and routine.
Royal watchers tend to focus on front-row moments: balcony appearances, school gates, formal processions. But the Wales children’s day-to-day life runs on quieter constants — and, for more than a decade, Turrión Borallo has been one of them.
She joined the household in 2014, after the birth of Prince George, and has cared for Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis since they were very small.
King Charles III
From Palencia to the most scrutinised nursery in Britain
There’s a distinctly Spanish note in this story, and it lands at a time when many Spaniards continue to build careers across the UK in education, healthcare and hospitality. For Palencia, it is also a small point of pride: a local woman working at the heart of Britain’s most-watched family, then being formally thanked by the monarch.
Turrión Borallo trained at Norland College in Bath — the elite childcare school whose graduates are known for their traditional uniform and modern, high-pressure skillset.
What the Royal Victorian Medal actually means
The Royal Victorian Medal isn’t a “government honour” in the usual sense. It sits within the Royal Victorian system established in the Victorian era to recognise personal service to the sovereign or royal household, and it is granted as a mark of royal esteem.
That distinction matters. It frames the award less as a public celebration, more as private gratitude — made public only because honours lists are published.
A changing royal household, and a familiar face
The timing is also notable. The Wales family have been resetting their private life in Windsor, with recent reporting around their move to Forest Lodge and the security measures that come with it.
In that context, honouring a key staff member reads as a reminder of how much the institution depends on the people who keep it functioning when the cameras are elsewhere.
A quiet honour with a loud message
For Spain, it is a headline with an unusual twist: not a royal visit or diplomatic moment, but a Spaniard being recognised for the kind of work that rarely earns public applause. For the monarchy, it’s a small, carefully placed signal — that loyalty, professionalism and years of steady service still count for something.
And for the rest of us, it’s a glimpse of the truth behind royal imagery: that even the most symbolic family in Britain still relies, in very ordinary ways, on the people who show up every day and do the job well.
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