By Geoffrey Stanford, Executive Head of the RGS Newcastle Group and Neil Walker, Head of Westfield School
This spring marks an important milestone for education in the North East as Westfield School is to join the Royal Grammar School, Newcastle (RGS) to form the RGS Newcastle Group of Schools.
It is a development rooted in shared values, a commitment to exceptional pastoral care, and a deep belief in the transformative power of education.
Above all, it reflects our determination to secure a breadth of school options to suit a range of children and a strong and sustainable future for both school communities.
Westfield is a school with a long and proud history of nurturing its pupils. Families deeply value its warm ethos, small class sizes and excellent pastoral care. However, as many will recognise, the smallest independent schools have been feeling most sharply the effects of increasing financial pressures.
We believe that combining our expertise, facilities, and resources to form a group of schools, as is occurring in the independent schools’ sector across the country, will provide an even richer educational experience for all students at RGS and at Westfield.
For RGS, this partnership aligns closely with our long-held aspiration to offer high-quality early years provision. Our city centre site does not have the physical space to do so alone. The intended merger aims to strengthen both schools, providing a foundation for thoughtful collaboration while retaining distinct identities.
We understand that what matters most to families within our respective communities is continuity, stability and the protection of what makes each school special. Both schools will continue to operate as they do now, on their own sites, with their own staff, routines, admissions policies and cultures.
RGS will continue as an academically selective school, aiming to stretch and challenge its students. Westfield will remain proudly academically inclusive, offering a broad education that focuses on the development of the whole person.
There will also be positive opportunities for further collaboration in time. As relationships deepen, pupils may benefit from a wider range of clubs, activities, trips and shared expertise. These developments will grow gradually and with care, but the potential is exciting.
Both schools are united by a belief in opportunity, ambition and the transformative power of exceptional education. This new chapter strengthens that vision. It ensures long?term resilience, opens the door to thoughtful collaboration and places both Westfield and RGS in a strong position to serve future generations.
www.rgs.newcastle.sch.uk/about-us/group