King William’s College and The Buchan School announce new Principal

King William’s College and The Buchan School are delighted to announce the appointment of a new Principal, starting the role this September.

Damian Henderson MA (Cantab.) has taken on the role and relocated to the Isle of Man, with his wife Caroline and their three children; Chloe, Theodore and Madeleine.

Damian has an impressive academic and teaching record. Following his time at Cambridge University, he joined Eton College in 2001 to teach, in his words, “the two R’s” – Russian and rugby. Damian moved to Cranleigh School in Surrey in 2010, to become Assistant Director of Studies and Head of Modern Languages, and then to The Stephen Perse Foundation in Cambridge, in the role of IB Co-ordinator. Damian has spent the last eight years as Deputy Head (Academic) at Taunton School in Somerset.

After a thorough and rigorous recruitment process, which attracted interest from candidates around the globe, the selection process was completed in March and Damian was offered the position.

Damian said: “My family and I are thrilled to be joining King William’s College and The Buchan School. We were blown away both by the Isle of Man itself, and by the school. Everyone we met, from students to teachers and support staff, were so friendly, open and genuine, and painted such a warm picture of island and community life, that we can’t wait to join this amazing 200-year-old institution.”

Chairman of Governors, Peter Clucas, added: “He was the outstanding candidate in a strong field of final applicants and is keen to take on the challenges of leading our school. Damian will join us as we continue to improve the quality of education at King William’s College and The Buchan School. I know that Damian shares my passion for high educational standards and a life enhancing extracurricular programme, and his vision for the school will be at the centre of our next Development Plan. We look forward to welcoming Damian and his family into our community and I wish him every success for the future.”

The change in leadership for the school is announced following the decision last year by current Principal Joss Buchanan that he will retire at the end of this summer.