St Paul’s School Research Centre for the Education of Boys

In 2025, St Paul’s School announced the St Paul’s School Research Centre for the Education of Boys.

The commitment to founding the St Paul’s School Research Centre for the Education of Boys ensures that the St Paul’s School Group is both forward-thinking and evidence based. This ensures that we are doing what works best within our schools, but also enables us to contribute to the wider national and international conversation around the education of boys. The Centre will formally open in September 2026.

Sally-Anne Huang, High Master, said “This is an immensely important next step for our 500 year old school. As the UK’s most academic boys’ school we have much to contribute to improving education for all young men and a drive to do so.  Our Research Centre will support us in delivering this at a time when the challenges to boys, both at school and beyond, are marked. We want to go about this important work in a purposeful and analytical way and feel that the team of professionals at St Paul’s are well placed to do so.”

You can follow the Research Centre on LinkedIn for regular updates.

We were honoured to host the International Boys’ Schools Coalition (IBSC) UK-Europe Regional Conference on Friday 27 February, where we welcomed over 120 delegates for an insightful and energising day focused on “Teaching Boys: A Positive Perspective”. The purpose of this event was to reframe the narrative around boys’ education by shifting the conversation from a deficit-focused ‘crisis’ discourse to a strengths-based approach that recognises the positive role schools should play in boys’ development.

Following introductions from Sally-Anne Huang (High Master of St Paul’s School) and Tom Batty (Executive Director of IBSC), broadcaster, author and and former politician Rory Stewart opened the conference with a rousing plenary speech. Delegates attended workshops throughout the day ranging from ‘Equipping Boys to Build, Innovate and Lead’ to ‘Boys, Belonging and the Arts: Designing a Curriculum for Engagement and Expression’. St Paul’s School Research Centre for the Education of Boys held sessions on ‘Rethinking Boys’ Literacy and Reading Culture’ and ‘The Foundation of a Research Centre: Action, Practice and Collaboration’.

An engaging panel discussion between Joanna Hubbard (Executive Head of Shrewsbury House School Trust), Jaideep Barot (Head of Bristol Grammar School) and Nick Isles (Centre for Policy Research on Men and Boys) was hosted expertly by Mark Sturgeon (Headmaster of Aylesbury Grammar School). The day concluded with a fascinating plenary session delivered by New York University Professor of Developmental Psychology, Dr Niobe Way.

You can read a summary of the conference by clicking here, and you can watch the conference video below.