THE Duke and Duchess of Sussex visited Birkenhead on Monday for a whistle-stop tour of the town to visit community groups and meet residents.

Starting their tour in Hamilton Square, the royal couple spent around 45 minutes meeting and greeting the public after viewing the new Wilfred Owen sculpture erected to mark the 100th anniversary of his death.

They then unveiled a plaque, met local veterans and members of the Birkenhead Institute Old Boys before visiting inside of Birkenhead Town Hall.

Meghan wore a purple Babaton by Aritzia dress and scarlet red coat by Sentaler, and held onto her baby bump as she chatted to waiting dignitaries.

Harry and Meghan then left in a Range Rover to head to a secret engagement at Number 7 - a Feeding Birkenhead citizen's cafe and supermarket. The pair met with supermarket staff and members by learning how Number 7 helps to build the community's resilience against hunger.

Meghan, cradling her baby bump, was offered a cup of coffee from the cafe, but politely declined, saying: "I can't at the moment, sadly, but I can have a mint tea or something."

The duchess was also heard telling staff 'really, it's amazing', as she and Harry were shown the cut-price produce.

Meghan presented a fellow expectant mother with a large basket of baby goods.

The duchess told Angel Midgley, who is nearly five months pregnant with her second child: "I would say that I should lift it for you, but neither of us should be holding it!"

Miss Midgley, 27, who is expecting the baby on May 15, smiled as she was presented with the goods, including lotions, wipes and nappies.

As the basket was presented, Harry could be heard quipping: "Is there a baby in there?"

Their third engagement of the day was at Tomorrow's Women Wirral (TWW), an organisation that supports women in vulnerable circumstances and since opening in 2011, has helped more than 6,000 local women.

In the centre, based on Beckwith Street, the royal couple were greeted by staff and volunteers before being spoken to by TWW chief executive Angela Murphy about the charity.

Beforehand, Harry joked with staff by telling them to remember to breathe.

They then were shown to the 'purple room' which allowed the couple to meet with survivors of domestic abuse and hear their stories.

Knit and Knat group, is a knitting group for members and on Monday, they were busy knitting creations for the royal baby, who is due in April.

In the group, Meghan spoke to Carol Cullen, who was wearing a Cilla Black t-shirt and asked her what her favourite song was, she replied "How Much is That Doggy in the Window?", to which the Duchess said: "my grandma loved that song."

Harry then picked up a hat for a premature baby and picked up some small knitted boots which he put his fingers in and mimicked a walking child.

They then moved to a floristry where Harry posed for a 'selfie' with some members.

It was here when they were asked if it was a boy or a girl and Meghan said: "We don't know."

The duke and duchess then moved to "inspiration hall", where they unveiled a plaque to mark their visit to TWW.

Then it was on to the final engagement of the day, to the state-of-the-art youth zone The Hive.

Here the couple met young members as they took part in many activities and workshops across the centre before unveiling a plaque to mark their visit.