Views

Derham is known for his strong views on independent schools in the United Kingdom and makes occasional press appearances to argue his case,^{[6][7][8][9][10][11][12]} including inviting those from the other side of the debate to speak at the school.^[13] At Westminster, he introduced the PISA tests, introduced Queen's Scholarships for Girls^[14] and announced plans to open 6 schools in China from 2020,^[15] although these plans drew criticism from many of the students, as the schools will teach the Chinese Communist curriculum, as opposed to an international curriculum normally taught by international schools.^[16] Steve Tsang, director of the China Institute at SOAS, University of London, was quoted in the Financial Times as saying: “I think they have no idea what they’re dealing with [...] If you set up a school in China, they will have a party secretary superintending the whole school and the party secretary will be responsible for political education”.^[17] The issue was re-opened when The Times published an article, quoting Professor Edward Vickers of Kyushu University, accusing the school (and King's College School who have similar plans) of "helping Chinese teach propaganda".^[18][17] He edited a book, Loyal Dissent - a story of some of those who studied at Westminster.^[19]

Derham also has strong views on widening access to independent schools. He set up the Arnold Foundation in 2003, during his tenure as headmaster at Rugby School, which provides financial support for students from lower socio-economic backgrounds.^[20]

Awards and honours

Derham was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the 2018 Birthday Honours for services to education.^[21][22]