Richard'S Profile
Few schools can trace one of their Headmasters, our 4th, one Henry Dunster, to the globally renowned Harvard University. As Harvard’s first president, Dunster used the following phrase to describe himself, “Ego enim Lancastrensis sum”, I am a hard working Lancashire boy. Well, like Dunster, I am a hard working Lancashire lad, born locally with connections to Bury Grammar School Boys stretching back almost 30 years.
I was the first person from my family to go to university and have a love of learning inspired by my time at school and the staff who unlocked my potential. Education transformed my life, and as the 38th Headmaster of Bury Grammar School Boys, my aim is to inspire that same love of learning in others, creating confident entrepreneurial learners, capable of turning challenges into opportunities, calculated risk takers, who are unafraid of failure, but see it as a natural path to success and personal development.
I am very proud to be the 38th Headmaster of Bury Grammar School Boys, with its fine heritage, stretching back over centuries and I am excited about our future and the opportunities it holds.
I joined the school in September 2006 as Head of Chemistry, becoming Head of Science in my first term. As part of my NPQH, my National Professional Qualification for Headship, I built the school a VLE, a Virtual Learning Environment which resulted in the Managed Learning Environment our family of schools implements today. But my particular passion was for science and the development of our science facilities – and you will see the results on your tour when you visit.
In 2008 I became Deputy Academic and Second Master in 2010 and was appointed Headmaster after a rigorous selection process, which included a management consultancy firm, beginning my current role as Headmaster in March 2013 I believe, so the historians tell me that I am the only internal candidate to become Headmaster of Bury Grammar School Boys. The boys tell me that I could be the new Howlett, a Headmaster who served for 40 years. That would mean me being Head until I am eighty!
You will gather, from the photographs on our website (www.bgsboys.co.uk), that I am a keen sportsman as well as an academic. I was lucky enough to play Basketball at international level, representing England at U15, U19 and U23 levels. I captained my university team and played on the British Universities England team. Looking back, I attribute that success to a healthy balance between hard work, both in and out of the classroom, and as a school, this is a philosophy and approach we aim to inspire in the boys. Our commitment to this vision is what drives us.
I was the first person from my family to go to university and have a love of learning inspired by my time at school and the staff who unlocked my potential. Education transformed my life, and as the 38th Headmaster of Bury Grammar School Boys, my aim is to inspire that same love of learning in others, creating confident entrepreneurial learners, capable of turning challenges into opportunities, calculated risk takers, who are unafraid of failure, but see it as a natural path to success and personal development.
I am very proud to be the 38th Headmaster of Bury Grammar School Boys, with its fine heritage, stretching back over centuries and I am excited about our future and the opportunities it holds.
I joined the school in September 2006 as Head of Chemistry, becoming Head of Science in my first term. As part of my NPQH, my National Professional Qualification for Headship, I built the school a VLE, a Virtual Learning Environment which resulted in the Managed Learning Environment our family of schools implements today. But my particular passion was for science and the development of our science facilities – and you will see the results on your tour when you visit.
In 2008 I became Deputy Academic and Second Master in 2010 and was appointed Headmaster after a rigorous selection process, which included a management consultancy firm, beginning my current role as Headmaster in March 2013 I believe, so the historians tell me that I am the only internal candidate to become Headmaster of Bury Grammar School Boys. The boys tell me that I could be the new Howlett, a Headmaster who served for 40 years. That would mean me being Head until I am eighty!
You will gather, from the photographs on our website (www.bgsboys.co.uk), that I am a keen sportsman as well as an academic. I was lucky enough to play Basketball at international level, representing England at U15, U19 and U23 levels. I captained my university team and played on the British Universities England team. Looking back, I attribute that success to a healthy balance between hard work, both in and out of the classroom, and as a school, this is a philosophy and approach we aim to inspire in the boys. Our commitment to this vision is what drives us.