LONDON (Reuters) - Prince George, the young son of Britain's Prince William and wife Kate, is to start at nursery school in the new year, his father's office said on Friday (Dec 18).

George, the two-year-old great grandson of Queen Elizabeth and the third-in-line to the British throne, will attend the Westacre Montessori School Nursery near his parents' country mansion in Norfolk, east England, before the end of January.

"We are looking forward to welcoming George to our nursery where he will get the same special experience as all of our children," the nursery said in a statement.

Unlike his own father who had private tuition in a nursery at Buckingham Palace, Prince William attended Mrs Mynors nursery school in London while Kate went to a nursery school in Amman in Jordan where her father was working.

The nursery is located in a private road which the royals hope will deter prying eyes. William is particularly sensitive about press intrusion after his mother Princess Diana was killed in Paris in 1997 when her limousine crashed into the wall of a tunnel as they tried to flee a posse of chasing photographers.

In August, the royal family criticised the paparazzi for what it called increasingly dangerous attempts to photograph George when he was out with his nanny in London parks.