Remembering Dr Richard Barnes
Villiers Park joins colleagues, friends and the wider education community in remembering Dr Richard Barnes and celebrating the lasting impact of his work with the charity.
Serving as Chair of Trustees from 2014 to 2020, Richard brought insight, encouragement and a deep belief in the power of sustained support for students from less advantaged backgrounds. He served on the Board of Trustees for a total of eight years, from 2012 to 2020, spending six of those years as Chair.
Richard Gould, former Chief Executive at Villiers Park said:
“Richard Barnes was an early advocate of the need for strategies to widen participation at leading universities, including Cambridge where he held a professorship. His approach was closely aligned to that of Villiers Park, making him a perfect fit to serve as Chair of Trustees.
“He shared the Villiers Park view that support for less advantaged youngsters needed to be ongoing and largely school-based. For high ability students, doing well was not good enough; they needed to maximise their potential. He offered enthusiastic and constructive support as Villiers Park developed successful programmes to benefit our participating schools and their pupils.”
Deborah Richardson, former Director of Programmes at Villiers Park said:
“As an advocate for social mobility, Richard held a strong belief in equality of opportunities for all young people to ensure they have the best possible outcomes for their future. He was a loyal and committed friend of Villiers Park and enthusiastically supported our work with young people from all over the UK to develop their skills and knowledge to achieve their goals.
“Richard was kind, sincere and caring and despite having a busy life, he was always willing to give up his time to provide young people with advice and support whether it be running mock university interviews or having informal chats about future study and career opportunities.”
Sarah Chick, Head of Programmes at Villiers Park said:
"We always knew when Richard was in the office in Foxton, as his cheery voice filled any room he entered. He regularly came to check in with the Education Team to give us any updates, pieces of advice and stories. Richard led with his heart as well as his head and his lived experience meant he was a great advocate for the young people we worked with, championing in particular our work with more able students.
"Richard was my inspiration to join Emmanuel College as I embark on a MSt in Social Innovation. Having met with him just a few months ago, he was still larger than life, fully immersed in his many commitments and had no intention of slowing down. His legacy and spirit will remain with the many, many people he gave his passion and time to so generously, right to the end."
Gaby Sumner Chief Executive at Villiers Park said:
"We are deeply saddened to hear of Richard’s passing. His commitment to widening participation and social mobility played a key role in shaping Villiers Park and his belief that talented young people from under‑represented backgrounds should be supported to fulfil their potential influenced so much of our work. Richard’s leadership has left a lasting mark on the organisation, on all those who had the privilege of working with him and on the young people we support.”
Our thoughts are with his family, friends, former colleagues and all those whose lives he influenced.
