Welcome - From the Principal Elect

We are at an exciting point in our history as we celebrate our 145th anniversary. 

Stephen Ward, current Vice-Principal and Head of Senior School and Sixth Form, will take on the Principal role from September 2026. 

Stephen, who joined the senior leadership team at Stephen Perse Cambridge in 2018, has been instrumental in enhancing the educational experience of all of its students. He has made a sustained and transformative contribution to the school’s success throughout his tenure, raising academic outcomes and overseeing a record number of Oxbridge placements in recent years. As an established author and educator, Stephen has also created mathematics resources for Cambridge Assessment and has co-authored more than 20 A Level and International Baccalaureate mathematics textbooks. He holds Masters degrees in both mathematics and mathematics education from Trinity College, Cambridge.

For 145 years, our school has been synonymous with academic ambition, innovation and intellectual discovery. I look forward to building on the best of our traditions whilst embracing new opportunities to help our young people achieve the best possible outcomes and develop the skills and personal character to positively change the world.

^{Stephen Ward - Principal Elect}

Current Principal, Richard Girvan, will leave for his new role at Fettes College, Scotland, at the end of the Summer term.

He said: “It has been my privilege to serve the Stephen Perse community alongside Stephen Ward over the last six years.  He has been closely involved in every major strategic and operational decision over that time, while leading the senior school superbly as Head and more recently as Vice Principal. I am delighted he has agreed to take on the role of Principal - Stephen Perse is in the very best of hands, as it looks to an exciting future as the leading schools group in Cambridge.”