School run by monks to appoint outsider as head

ONE of Yorkshire’s leading Roman Catholic independent schools is to break with over 200 years of tradition by appointing a headmaster from outside the monastic community.

By The Newsroom

Published 31st Aug 2013, 01:00 BST

Ampleforth College in North Yorkshire – run by Benedictine monks since 1802 – will recruit its first lay headmaster when current head Fr Gabriel Everitt retires in 2014 or 2015.

A college spokesperson said: “Following discussions with the monastic community and with the trustees of the St Laurence Education Trust about how to appoint the best possible replacement, the college will be looking to recruit its first lay head.

“This conclusion has not been arrived at lightly, but given both the nature and commitments of the monastic community and the needs of the school for the best possible leadership, this has been decided upon as the appropriate course of action.”

The college said it remained committed to its “Benedictine character”.

North Yorkshire