EMMA PATTISON HEAD, EPSOM COLLEGE

Zoe MacDougall and Emma Pattison discuss the importance of service within school life and the critical need for the independent sector to adapt to the changing world.

At Epsom College, where she took up her post as Head in September 2022, Emma Pattison is unswervingly committed to the College’s key principle of benevolence. The College was founded by Dr John Propert in 1855 as The Royal Medical Benevolent College, taking the name of Epsom College only in 1910. Today, the Royal Medical Foundation is an independent charity, located at Epsom College, supporting medical families experiencing hardship. Unsurprisingly, with charity underpinning the school’s foundation, service is a core value here.

Charity is a topical subject in the independent sector as the charitable status of our schools is currently subject to scrutiny and criticism from some quarters. Emma acknowledges that “We’re all considering our charitable status in independent schools and wanting to make