The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have joined gardening sessions for young people benefitting from one of Edinburgh’s green spaces.

William and Kate helped nursery school children scatter plant seeds that will attract butterflies during a visit to the 125-year-old Starbank Park.

They also met teenagers working towards their Duke of Edinburgh’s bronze award who were planting sunflowers.

Starbank Park is run by the City of Edinburgh Council and protected by Fields in Trust which has William as its president, a role previously held by his grandfather the Duke of Edinburgh.

The couple heard about the trust’s Green Space Index, an annual barometer of green space provision and distribution across the UK, and chatted to volunteers and families about the importance of the park to the local community.

The index identifies the provision of green spaces and this year’s report found more than 2.77 million people live further than a 10-minute walk from a local park or green space, and only 6% of all parks and green spaces are protected in perpetuity.

City of Edinburgh Council has used the index to ensure almost all of its residents are within a 10-minute walk of a protected park or green space.