The Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference (HMC), formerly known as the Headmasters' Conference and now branded HMC (The Heads' Conference), is an association of the head teachers of 351 private fee-charging schools (both boarding schools and day schools), traditionally described as public schools. 302 members are based in the United Kingdom, Crown dependencies and Ireland. There are 72 international members (mostly from the Commonwealth) and also 28 associate or affiliate members who are head teachers of state schools or other influential individuals in the world of education, who endorse and support the work of HMC.
Contents
History
The Conference dates from 1869 when Edward Thring, Headmaster of Uppingham School, asked sixty of his fellow headmasters to meet at his house to consider the formation of a "School Society and Annual Conference". Fourteen accepted the invitation, and twelve were present for the whole of the initial meeting: Edward Thring, George Blore (Bromsgrove School), Albert Wratislaw (King Edward VI School, Bury St Edmunds), John Mitchinson (The King's School, Canterbury), William Grignon (Felsted School), Robert Sanderson (Lancing College), George Butler (Liverpool College), Augustus Jessopp (Norwich School), William Wood (Oakham School), Steuart Pears (Repton School), T. H. Stokoe (Richmond), Daniel Harper (Sherborne School), and James Welldon (Tonbridge School). John Dyne (Highgate School) attended on the second day, and Alfred Carver (Dulwich College) did not turn up. From that date there have been annual meetings.
Until the 1970s, membership was confined to 200 schools.
In 1996, the association changed its name from the "Headmasters' Conference" to the "Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference". In 2023, the name was changed to HMC (The Heads' Conference).
Membership of the HMC is often considered to be what defines a school as a public school in England and Wales. Not all independent schools are in the HMC; in particular, many notable girls' schools are not members, partly because historically the HMC was for boys' schools only. In 2005, the association opened membership to heads of girls-only schools.
Today HMC's membership includes boys', girls' and co-educational schools.
List of HMC member schools in the United Kingdom and Crown dependencies
Wales
The Cathedral School, Llandaff
Christ College
Howell's School, Llandaff
Haberdashers' Monmouth School
Rougemont School
Northern Ireland
Belfast Royal Academy
Campbell College
Coleraine Grammar School (formerly Coleraine Academical Institution)
Friends' School, Lisburn
Methodist College, Belfast
Rockport School
Sullivan Upper School
The Royal Belfast Academical Institution
The Royal School, Armagh
The Royal School Dungannon
Guernsey
Elizabeth College
Jersey
Victoria College
Isle of Man
King William's College
International members
Africa
Michaelhouse, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
Peponi School, Ruiru, Kenya
Peterhouse Boys' School, Marondera, Zimbabwe
St. Andrews School, Turi, Kenya
St. George's College, Harare, Zimbabwe
Asia
American International School, Saigon, Vietnam
Bangkok International Preparatory and Secondary School, Thailand
The British School, New Delhi, India
British School Jakarta, Indonesia
The Doon School, Dehradun, India
Dulwich College Shanghai Pudong, China
Dulwich College Singapore
Harrow International School Bangkok, Thailand
Harrow International School Hong Kong
Harrow International School Shenzhen, China
Jerudong International School, Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam
Kellett School, Hong Kong
King's College International School, Bangkok, Thailand
Kolej Tuanku Ja'afar, Negeri Sembilan, Malaysia
The Lawrence School, Sanawar, India
Marlborough College Malaysia
Shrewsbury International School Bangkok, Thailand
Tanglin Trust School, Singapore
Wellington College International Shanghai, China
Australia and New Zealand
King's College, Auckland
Christ's College, Christchurch, Canterbury, Christchurch
The King's School, Sydney, New South Wales
Pymble Ladies' College, Sydney, New South Wales
The Scots College, Sydney, New South Wales
St Leonard's College, Melbourne, Victoria
Sydney Grammar School, New South Wales
Central, North and South America
Crofton House School, Vancouver, Canada
The Grange School, Santiago, Chile
Markham College, Lima, Peru
San Silvestre School, Lima, Peru
St George's College, Buenos Aires, Argentina
St. Michaels University School, Victoria, Canada
St Paul's School, Brazil São Paulo, Brazil
Continental Europe
Aiglon College, Chesières, Switzerland
Akademeia High School, Warsaw, Poland
The British School in the Netherlands, The Hague, The Netherlands
The British School of Amsterdam, The Netherlands
The British School of Barcelona, Spain
The British School of Brussels, Belgium
The British School of Bucharest, Romania
The British School of Milan, Italy
The British School of Paris, France
The Cambridge School of Bucharest, Romania
Campion School, Athens, Greece
The English College in Prague, Czech Republic
The English School, Nicosia, Cyprus
The International School of Lausanne, Switzerland
King's College, Madrid, Spain
Oporto British School, Porto, Portugal
St Catherine’s British School, Athens, Greece
St George's, Rome, Italy
St Julian's School, Lisbon, Portugal
Middle East
Brighton College Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates — Barney Durrant
Brighton College Dubai, United Arab Emirates — Simon Crane
British International School of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia — Helen Olds
British International School Riyadh, Saudi Arabia — Jeremy Newton
The British School Al Khubairat, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates — Mark Leppard
British School Muscat, Oman — Kai Vacher
Deira International School, Dubai, United Arab Emirates — Simon O'Connor
Doha College, Qatar — David Tongue
Dubai College, United Arab Emirates — Tom Duckling
GEMS FirstPoint, Dubai, United Arab Emirates — David Wade
GEMS Jumeirah College, Dubai, United Arab Emirates — Nick Brain
GEMS Wellington Academy Al Khail, Dubai, United Arab Emirates — Ann Haydon
GEMS Wellington International School, Dubai, United Arab Emirates — Maryssa O’Connor
GEMS Wesgreen International School, Sharjah, United Arab Emirates — James McDonald
Jumeirah English Speaking School, Dubai, United Arab Emirates — Shane O'Brien
Associates
Bangor Grammar School, Bangor, County Down
Bishop Wordsworth's School, Salisbury, Wiltshire
Gordon's School, Woking, Surrey
Pate's Grammar School, Cheltenham, Gloucestershire
The Judd School, Tonbridge, Kent
Wymondham College, Morley, Norfolk
Former Members
Abbotsholme School
Allhallows School (closed 1998)
Bath College (closed 1909)
Beaumont College (closed 1967)
Bristol Cathedral School
Carmel College (closed 1997)
Doncaster Grammar School
Douai School (closed 1999)
Dover College
Kelly College (closed 2014)
King Edward VI School, Bury St Edmunds
Liverpool College
Llandovery College
Mercers' School (closed 1959)
Mount St Mary's College (closed 2025)
Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School, Blackburn
Rendcomb College (closed 2026)
Richmond School
Rishworth School
Rydal School
St Bees School
St Lawrence College, Ramsgate
Sebright School
Tettenhall College
Weymouth College (closed 1940)
HMC Projects in Central and Eastern Europe
HMC Projects in Central and Eastern Europe is a charity offering opportunities for students and young teachers from Central and Eastern Europe to develop themselves, by coming to HMC member schools in the UK for a year.
Chairs of the HMC
Chairmen of the Headmasters' Conference
The following were the Chairmen of the HMC until 1996.
Chairs of the Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference
The following are the Chairs of the HMC after 1996.
Michael Mavor, Headmaster, Rugby School, 1997
Patrick Tobin, Principal, Stewart's Melville College, 1998
James Sabben-Clare, Headmaster, Winchester College, 1999
Tom Wheare, Headmaster, Bryanston School, 2000
Chris Brown, Headmaster, Norwich School, 2001
E. Gould, Master, Marlborough College, 2002
G. Able, Master, Dulwich College, 2003
Martin Stephen, High Master, The Manchester Grammar School/St Paul's School, 2004
Priscilla Chadwick, Principal, Berkhamsted Collegiate School, 2005
Andrew Boggis, Warden, Forest School, 2006
Nigel Richardson, Headmaster, The Perse School, 2007 <*>
Bernard Trafford, Headmaster, Wolverhampton Grammar School, 2007–2008
Tim Hastie-Smith, Headmaster, Dean Close School, 2008–2009
Andrew Grant, Headmaster, St Albans School, 2009–2010
David Levin, Headmaster, City of London School, 2010–2011
Chairs of the HMC Committee
The following were Chairmen of the HMC Committee in the early years of the Conference.
In these years they served alongside the Chairman of the Conference (the 'annual meeting') until, in 1921, it was agreed that the Chairman of the Annual Meeting should always also be Chairman of the HMC Committee.
G Ridding, Head Master, Winchester College, 1870, 1871, 1872
Daniel Harper, Head Master, Sherborne School, 1874, 1875, 1876, 1877, 1878
G C Bell, Master, Marlborough College, 1879, 1881, 1882, 1883, 1885, 1886, 1887
T W Jex-Blake, Head Master, Rugby School, 1880
E C Wickham, Head Master, Wellington College, 1884, 1888
E Warre, Head Master, Eton College, 1889, 1893
W A Fearon, Head Master, Winchester College, 1891, 1895
E Lyttelton, Headmaster, Haileybury, 1898, 1902, 1904
H W Moss, Headmaster, Shrewsbury School, 1900
J Gow, Head Master, Westminster School, 1906, 1907, 1908, 1911
R Cary Gilson, Chief Master, King Edward's School, Birmingham, 1909, 1910
F Fletcher, Head Master, Charterhouse, 1913
C Lowry, Headmaster, Tonbridge School, 1916