The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have installed a second kitchen in their new Kensington Palace apartment, it was revealed yesterday.

The existing 350 sq ft kitchen, originally designed by Princess Margaret’s husband, Lord Snowdon, has been refurbished at a reported cost to taxpayers of £170,000.

But William and Kate also wanted a ‘private, family kitchen’ in the four- storey, 20-plus room home.

The cost of reconfiguring the room from existing office space has also fallen to the public purse, but officials stressed last night that the second kitchen itself, as well as all fixtures and fittings, were paid for by the couple.

Asked whether Prince Charles might have helped his son pay for the new kitchen, a Clarence House spokesman said: ‘Many young couples when doing up houses seek help from their parents or grandparents. There may have been some assistance.’

Details of the Cambridges’ domestic arrangements were revealed yesterday in an annual briefing on the Royal Family’s finances, where it was disclosed that the Queen is to receive a generous 5 per cent rise in public funding next year.

A new deal with the Government means the amount of money given to the Queen to undertake her public duties and the upkeep of all royal residences is now being taken from a single pot of money known as the Sovereign Grant, which she can spend as she wishes.

This is drawn from a 15 per cent slice of the profits of the Crown Estate, a portfolio of land, holdings and investments worth more than £9 billion, that was handed to the Government by the Crown two centuries ago.

Record profits means the monarch’s income will increase from £36.1 million in 2013/14 to an inflation-busting £37.9 million in 2014/15. But aides insist the monarchy still offers good value for money – just 56p per  person each year, or just over 1p per week.

‘We try to get the best value as possible from the public funds entrusted to us,’ said the Queen’s ‘money man’, Keeper of the Privy Purse, Sir Alan Reid.

Inevitably, however, it is how her family spends that money that will come under most scrutiny, Daily Mail informs.