New Head for St Edmund’s School Canterbury
05 Mar 2018
Following a thorough and comprehensive selection process, the Governors of St Edmund’s School Canterbury are pleased to announce the appointment of Mr Edward O’Connor as the school’s new Head from September 2018.
Edward has been Deputy Head at St Edmund’s since 2013 and is currently Acting Head of the Junior School. During his time at St Edmund’s, Edward has had particular responsibility for teaching and learning, staff development and the curriculum.
He succeeds Mrs Louise Moelwyn-Hughes who has provided the school with seven years of outstanding and inspirational leadership. Louise has recently been appointed Master of Marlborough College and will leave at the end of the summer term 2018.
“We are delighted that Edward O’Connor has accepted the appointment,” said Michael Terry, Chairman of the Governors of St Edmund’s School. “He has already brought many qualities to the School, and we are very pleased that this appointment will also bring welcome continuity in terms of our development and teaching plans for the future. I know that we could not have selected anyone who would do more for the education of the pupils in our care.”
Edward O’Connor read History at Peterhouse, Cambridge. This was followed by an MPhil in International Relations at Jesus College, Oxford. Edward then worked for five years in the international financial sector in London. He left the City in 2000 and switched careers to teaching. Edward has worked in four leading independent schools as a teacher of History and Politics, an academic Head of Department and a Director of Sixth Form. In 2012, he completed an MEd in Educational Leadership and School Improvement at his previous employer, The Perse Upper School in Cambridge.
He has also enjoyed success as a published author of four novels and is a keen sportsman. In his youth, he represented Hertfordshire as an athlete, rowed competitively at university and has played football for a variety of teams. His daughters Esme and Isabel are currently pupils at St Edmund’s and his wife Jude is a member of the Student Welfare Team at the University of Kent.
Edward O’Connor said, “I feel privileged to be taking over as Head of St Edmund’s School at this exciting stage in its evolution. When I arrived here five years ago, I immediately fell in love with the school’s family spirit, its outstanding pastoral care and its commitment to nurturing the individual talents of pupils. St Edmund’s is a dynamic and vibrant institution and I look forward to working with all members of the school community to develop an exciting vision for the future.”
St Edmund’s is an historic independent co-educational day and boarding school located in beautiful grounds on the outskirts of Canterbury. The school has an excellent academic record and is also particularly renowned for music, drama, art and sport. St Edmund’s currently educates approximately 600 pupils between the ages of three to eighteen, including the choristers of Canterbury Cathedral.
The current Head, Mrs Moelwyn-Hughes, commented “Edward will prove an outstanding Head of St Edmund’s School. He is much loved by this community and is the perfect person to lead the school into the next exciting period in its long history.”
Photo: Edward O’Connor