THE WYKEHAM JOURNAL 2020
WINCHESTER IN THE 21 ST CENTURY : EDUCATING FOR THE FUTURE
AN INTERVIEW WITH THE WARDEN , SIR RICHARD STAGG ( G , 1969-73 ) AND HEADMASTER , DR TIM HANDS
This is a story about a Wykehamist whose experience of the world , he says , made him question whether his former school was fully meeting the educational needs of modern society . While everything outside was changing at a rapid pace , the corridors of Winchester College were not .
Sir Richard Stagg took on the mantle of Warden after a distinguished career as a british diplomat . Describing his first weeks in the Winchester job , he says : ‘ I was very struck by how much , in some areas , things had moved forward ( bursaries being a wonderful example ); while in others little had changed since I was at the school . I left in 1973 . That was quite a long time ago in terms of what has changed elsewhere .
‘ We now live in a world which wants equality of opportunity . Yet a boys-only school excludes half the population . If boys are going to live and work and thrive in a world in which they may well end up working with women as partners or bosses , it can ’ t be an ideal preparation to spend the whole of their teenage years in a school environment where they don ’ t really meet them .’
In his Headmaster he found the ideal person to facilitate change . Dr Tim Hands had overseen the introduction of girls into the sixth form in his previous job as Master of Magdalen College School , Oxford .
It was not a sudden decision he says . But he and the Warden were increasingly aware that only 10 % of staff are female , most of the Governing Body are white males , and the school did not reflect life outside : ‘ Kingsgate Street does not end in Damascus . There was no moment where the clouds parted , the vision of the new world appeared and said , “ Child , do !”’ says Dr Hands .
There have been small numbers of day pupils at Winchester for decades , including daughters of dons , some of whom have been educated here since 1979 . The Governing Body actively considered a move to co-education in 1985 . It debated the matter again in 2005 , deciding to review the situation every 10 years . The most recent review began in 2019 and by December 2020 the Governing Body decided unanimously to launch a programme for change .
The initial intake will be low — some 30 sixth form girls admitted between 2022 and 2024 as day girls . Thereafter a new girls ’ boarding house will be built for another 50 to live in . Female pupils will be able to be prefects and scholars , but will not be permitted to board in College , or in any other of the existing all male boarding houses . As for sports , uniform and other such detail , the school is consulting on
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