Head Master
Head Master, Mr Ian Davenport, BA
(with Second Master, Randall Thane, and School Monitors)
Appointed in 2004 - previously the Senior Housemaster at Radley College and was educated at Bloxham School and Durham University where he read Politics.
"Think where mans glory most begins and ends,
And say my glory was I had such friends." WB Yeats
I always think that we live spiritually by what others have given us in the significant hours of our life. These significant hours do not announce themselves as coming, but arrive unexpected. Nor do they make a great show of themselves: they pass almost unperceived. Often, indeed, their significance comes home to us as we look back, just as the beauty of a landscape or of a piece of music strikes us first in our recollection of it. Much that has become our own in gentleness, modesty, kindness, willingness to forgive, in veracity, loyalty, resignation under suffering, we owe to people in whom we have seen or experienced these virtues at work, sometimes in a great manner, sometimes in a small. A thought which had become an act sprang into us like a spark, and lighted a new flame within us. If we had before us those who have thus been a blessing to us, and could tell them how it came about, they would be amazed to learn what passed over from their life into ours. Albert Schweizer
All headmasters are asked at some stage what makes their school special. The answer lies in part within the two quotations above. W.B. Yeats reminds us that friends are so important. I am sure here at Blundell’s the relationships formed in our community are at the heart of what is a special school. Albert Schweizer eloquently draws out the bond between the teacher and the pupil, but also his wise words apply to all other relationships, often unheard and unsung, which make community life so rewarding. Kindness and excellence are not mutually incompatible concepts. Whilst good qualifications are essential, and we work very hard together to ensure strong academic success, we also believe in a sense of wholeness. Manners, kindness, courtesy and humility are very important; they are not a veneer at Blundell’s but deeply rooted in the pupils. They show consideration and support for others. We are, of course, continually introducing our pupils to developments in the educational world and giving them the framework to move forward successfully into the complex world because I see Blundell's as a gateway to a wider perspective both nationally and internationally. In short our role is to provide the pupils with the gift of both roots and wings.
Sept 2007