A School with Vision

Whitgift is an academically successful boys’ school with diversity and opportunity at its heart and great vision for its future.

Headmaster Chris Ramsey has just completed his second academic year at the helm of boys’ school Whitgift where a great deal of positive, forward-thinking change is underway. His first year was spent getting to know the dedicated team of staff and pupils; regular student breakfast meetings enabled him to understand the heart of the school first-hand. Mr Ramsey commented, “Whitgiftians are a diverse bunch, all of them terrific company, bright and highly engaged. I very much enjoy conversing with them and learning about their likes, dislikes and ambitions.”

Now, working with his senior management team, Chris Ramsey has launched Whitgift Vision 2025. One key pillar of the vision is ensuring Whitgift remains focused on being an academically leading school, not just in terms of results, but by embedding a love of learning within its students, something that will serve them well for future life. Mr Ramsey says, “Our ambition is to increase our international perspective and to place the boys and the school within a global context, so that students understand their place in the world and their responsibilities to both their local and global communities.”

In support of their outreach programme at home and abroad, the school has also appointed a new Director of Outreach, who will have oversight of current and new initiatives. Since 2000, children from local primary schools have come to Whitgift each week to benefit from a variety of facilities and classes, including music, computing and art. This, and many other long-established partnerships, are set to continue while new forward-thinking avenues are forged.

A key area of Vision 2025 is the school’s work on sustainability within the school and in the local community. Further afield, in plans yet to be unveiled, is a proposed partnership with an overseas school with an entirely environmental ethos. Running alongside this is a 10 year focus to enhance the leafy 45-acre site, in particular developing more social spaces for students.One of Whitgift’s unique characteristics is their diverse group of boys, something that will continue to be its bedrock. In addition, Foundation bursaries support just under half of Whitgift pupils leading to a good social and cultural mix. Classes are full of vibrant, happy boys who appreciate the privilege of their education and make the most of their opportunities.

Many will be familiar with the Whitgift known for its sporting prowess. However, success in sport is the product of encouraging participation and excellent coaching; alongside their studies, students enjoy being active and over 1200 students play in more than 2000 fixtures annually. With more than 80 clubs and societies, from debating and basketball to beekeeping and philosophy, many boys partake in these activities as passions rather than competitively.

By 2020 there will be 1500 pupils at Whitgift, making it the largest school in south London, a size which allows for such breadth of co-curricular activity. Boys are encouraged to join a variety of clubs and to try something new. Pastorally, the junior years, middle years and sixth form have their own Heads of School, and the house structure is vertical, so that younger boys meet older boys who can then mentor and support them.

But the overarching vision of Whitgift is to have boys who are excited about learning, to be even more curious, to question and debate everything, to think broadly and to look at the bigger picture, well beyond the classroom and into a world where resilience is key.