Past pupil tells how RGS shaped his life

Past pupil and barrister Justin Kitson, who says RGS gave him so much more than an education, urges students to cherish their school years as the foundation for life

STUDENTS have been encouraged to treasure their time at Ripon Grammar School and recognise that the friendships, values and passions they develop there will shape their lives long after they leave.

Justin Kitson KC, who left the school in 1993 and is now a leading barrister at Selborne Chambers in London, delivered the keynote address at Ripon Grammar School’s annual Prizegiving.

Speaking to prize winners, students, staff, governors, parents and guests, he reflected on his own journey since leaving RGS, describing his school years as the foundation not only of a successful legal career but of the life he has built beyond it.

“Looking back over the last 33 years, I realise that the foundations of my life were laid here at Ripon Grammar School,” he said. “These were laid through three things: music, friendships and values.”

After leaving Ripon Grammar School, Mr Kitson studied medieval history at the University of St Andrews before qualifying as a barrister in London. During a distinguished career spanning more than 25 years, he has appeared before the UK Supreme Court, represented high-profile figures from the music industry and was appointed King’s Counsel.

However, he told the audience that career success had not been the defining measure of his life.

“My career has given me a living, but it isn’t what has given me a life,” he said.

Encouraging students not to feel pressured to have every step of their future mapped out, he added: “If your future feels uncertain, don’t worry. You’re not supposed to have it all worked out. Most of us don’t. Interesting lives seldom begin with a perfect plan.”

He urged students not to abandon the interests they love in pursuit of conventional success, describing how music, first nurtured at Ripon Grammar School, had remained a constant throughout his life, eventually leading him to study at the Royal College of Music and perform internationally.

“So, if there is something you genuinely love, don’t be too quick to leave it behind simply because the world tells you to become serious,” he said. “The things that bring you joy now will become the things that sustain you at forty, fifty and beyond.”

Reflecting on friendships formed during his school days, Mr Kitson said many of those relationships remained among the most important in his life more than three decades later.

“The people I shared sandwiches with, copied homework from, and got into precisely the right amount of trouble with are still among my closest friends today,” he said.

He also spoke movingly about the importance of kindness and compassion, explaining that during periods of family tragedy it was the support of lifelong friends, rather than professional achievements, that had sustained him.

“What matters are the people who know you,” he said. “Not the person you’ve become, but the person you have always been.”

Concluding his address, Mr Kitson encouraged students to pursue academic excellence while remembering the qualities that would matter most throughout their lives.

“I hope you will be ambitious, work hard and aim high,” he said. “But also be infused with curiosity and kindness, be brave enough to care about something beyond yourself.”

Reflecting on his return to the school, he added: “When I walked into this hall today, I thought I was back in a place that gave me an education. I leave reminded that it gave me something much greater than that. Thank you for inviting me home.”

Headmaster Jonathan Webb talked about the strength, stability and experience of staff as a great blessing for the school, adding that he looked to the future generations in the hall to continue the excellent academic tradition and maintain RGS's position as a top state school and a stop state school for academic excellence in the North.

“But, important though this is, RGS is about so much more than academic results.," he stressed. :"We are here to educate the whole child, which is why we place the values of Respect, Growth and Support at the heart of all we do.”

Chair of governors Elizabeth Jarvis praised hardworking staff as she declared it had been an other exceptional year for the school, stressing: "This does not happen by accident."

Urging parents and supporters to contribute to the school's Development Fund, she added: "The funding this school receives from government doesn't come close to covering the cost of the education we want to deliver."

*Pictured above, from left: Headmaster Jonathan Webb, chair of governors Elizabeth Jarvis, Justin Kitson and his old school friend, former RGS head girl Caroline Smith (née Dodsworth), who accompanied him for the day

*Below: 2025-26 prizewinners

See full list of prizewinners here

Read Mr Kitson's speech in full here

Past pupil tells how RGS shaped his life