The Duke of Sussex is not planning a permanent move back to the UK, according to well-placed sources.

Despite reports that Prince Harry could be seeking a phased return, sources suggest he will continue to be based in the United States, where he lives with his wife, the Duchess of Sussex, and their children.

It is understood that concern over his and his family’s security in the UK remains an issue.

Prince Harry and Meghan are also said to be unlikely to want to give up on the philanthropic and business projects that they have built while in the US.

There have been reports of a prince restless in California, approaching his 40th birthday discontented with a life among the rootless wealthy and seeking to rebuild links with his old life in the UK, before he stepped down as a working royal.

• Why did Harry and Meghan leave the Royal Family

But a different narrative has been claimed by well-placed sources, who say such a return to royal life in the UK is not on the cards.

They suggest Prince Harry is equally able to support his charities and projects from the US and can return to the UK for visits.

He travelled to the UK last week for his uncle’s memorial service – and has since flown back to the US.

Much of the attention over the event was focused on claims Prince Harry hadn’t spoken to Prince William while at the church service in Norfolk, in what has become an icy distance between the brothers.

The service was for the late Lord Robert Fellowes, brother-in-law of Princess Diana, on the Spencer side of the family, to which Prince Harry seems to have remained well connected.

At an Invictus Games service in St Paul’s Cathedral earlier this summer, the prince was seen close to his Spencer relatives at an event not attended by senior royals.

The prince was quick to return to the UK when it was revealed King Charles had been diagnosed with cancer – with father and son having a brief meeting in London.

There have also been trips to the law courts in London, including his battle with the tabloid press over claims of unlawful information gathering.

There is an ongoing, labyrinthine legal wrangle with the Home Office over his security status in the UK – which has become a thorny issue in any discussion about a return.

In an interview with ITV, the prince said that anxiety over safety was a reason he wouldn’t “bring my wife back to this country”.

But having made such a well-documented departure from royal life in the UK – in a Netflix film and his book Spare – the couple are now inevitably facing speculation about what comes next.

Without a royal role and in an online world, Prince Harry and Meghan could live anywhere – and at present that means WFC (working from California).

They have charities and causes, and Meghan has put out social media teasers for a lifestyle cookery brand.

Although with the presidential election looming in the US, it is hard to think they won’t want to stir more than pots of jam when issues they’ve raised, such as online misinformation, are likely to be up for debate.

There have been trips too, most recently to Colombia, but with so many of the trappings of a royal visit, that raised questions about whether they were recreating the royal world they wanted to escape.

With the big milestone of his 40th birthday fast approaching, and with such intense public interest, there will be more questions about where Prince Harry sees his long-term future role.