Gavin Rochussen to become Tonbridge’s new Chair of Governors

Gavin Rochussen has been elected as Tonbridge School’s new Chair of Governors, with effect from the 2022-23 academic year.

Gavin, who has been a member of the School’s governing body since April 2014, succeeds Robert Elliott, whose five-year tenure as Tonbridge’s Chair of Governors will conclude at the end of the Summer Term.

Gavin describes it as “a privilege and an honour” to take up the position. A Chartered Accountant qualifying in South Africa, where he grew up, and a graduate from the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, he has lived in the UK for more than two decades, and has enjoyed a long and distinguished career in financial services and investment management.

He describes education and social mobility as his greatest passions, and he is looking forward to help lead the School’s ambitious widening access programme in the coming years. Tonbridge has plans in place to double the number of those receiving means-tested Foundation Awards to up to 100 boys by 2028, a year which marks the 475th anniversary of the School’s founding.

“Seeing the impact that we can all have on the lives and the futures of boys is incredibly rewarding, and I believe the School will become an even better, stronger institution if we continue on our path to bring about a greater diversity in our student body,” he said.

“Widening access is hugely important for Tonbridge. Not only will we be giving many boys a wonderful start in their lives and careers, but we will also see so many benefits here at the School, reflected in an increasingly diverse, vibrant and high-achieving student community.

“The power of education is, without question, part of my philosophy, and at the same time I’m always looking for opportunities to tackling inequality. In widening access, the two combine. I believe we should allow as many people as possible to have access to an outstanding education: and this will be good not only for the School, but for society too.”

Gavin’s three boys, Luke, Adam and Tommy, have all attended Tonbridge as boarders over the past 15 years, and he says that it was, in part, the boys’ very happy experiences – enjoying academic and co-curricular life, in particular music and sport – that inspired him to become a School governor. “I felt I owed a certain debt to Tonbridge following the fantastic outcomes that my boys had at the School, and wanted to see what I could give back.”

His greatest satisfaction as a governor over the past eight years is, he says, in “seeing the School go from strength to strength, and in getting the very best out of its boys. That is one of Tonbridge’s true talents, in bringing out potential and making boys realise what they can achieve. The fantastic feedback we, as governors, frequently have from the boys, including when we meet them for farewell interviews just before Skinners’ Day, is something that makes me very proud of everyone at the School.”

Gavin will continue to combine his work as a governor with his current position as Chief Executive Officer of Polar Capital, a London-listed asset management firm. As with Tonbridge, Polar Capital has a strong ethos of social responsibility, and Gavin has seized the opportunity to lead the firm’s partnership programme with Westminster City School. This has seen Polar lending financial support, ensuring that all Westminster pupils have access to laptops and the web, as well as setting up a far-reaching bursary scheme, which each year funds two university undergraduates from disadvantaged backgrounds, providing full tuition fees, living costs and even career opportunities.

A keen runner and fundraiser, he has completed no fewer than 41 marathons around the world, including ten London Marathons. He is a long-term supporter of Whizz-Kidz, the UK’s leading charity for young wheelchair users.

His other interests include sailing, travel, hiking, golf and, of course, family life.

Robert Elliott’s relationship with the School, which now spans more than a quarter of a century, also began as a parent, when his boys – firstly Robert, and later James – were boarders in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Robert became a governor at Tonbridge in 2003, and has led the governing body with great distinction since 2017.

“Robert has been unstinting in his loyal commitment to the School as a past parent, governor and as Chair,” Gavin says. “His measured, wise and supportive counsel has always been reassuring.

“Leading the governors and supporting the Headmaster and the Senior Team during this remarkable five-year period, in which Tonbridge has continued to prosper and thrive, despite challenges such as the pandemic, is a fine achievement. I know that Robert will continue to take a keen interest in the School’s progress for many years to come.”

Pictured above: Gavin Rochussen at the School.