Distinguished ambassador’s wonderful legacy

February 24, 2021

A Sixth Form Scholarship for pupils at Monmouth School for Boys has been created in memory of Mr Trevor Rutter OBE, CBE

A man who secured a scholarship to join Monmouth School and travelled the world as a distinguished ambassador, has left a wonderful legacy for future students.

Trevor Rutter OBE, CBE studied at the University of Oxford and enjoyed a distinguished 30-year career in the British Council, rising to Assistant Director General.

The Headmaster at Monmouth engineered a scholarship that allowed Mr Rutter to stay beyond school leaving age into Sixth Form, says Trevor’s son, Orlando Rutter.

And, rather fittingly, a Sixth Form Scholarship for pupils at Monmouth School for Boys has now been created in memory of Mr Rutter who died in May 2019, aged 85.

“My father always mentioned his debt of gratitude for the breadth and depth of his education and the life opportunities it offered him,” said Orlando.

“As a family, we are pleased to donate £10,000 in his memory and are delighted to think that future students will be given similar opportunities thanks to this legacy.”

Mr Rutter, the son of a former miner in Wales, was awarded the OBE in 1976 and a CBE in 1990 for services to cultural diplomacy.

Mr Rutter secured a scholarship to Monmouth Grammar School (as it was known then) thanks to opportunities offered by the Education Act 1944 and a teacher at his village primary school.

He developed his love for literature, music, buildings and countryside while at school in Monmouth between 1945 and 1952.

Orlando said: “My father discovered literature through books read first at Monmouth and then, as an undergraduate, music through a school expedition to a Halle Orchestra performance in Gloucester Cathedral, a passion for the countryside instilled by his boyhood experiences and also a Monmouth headmaster who encouraged self-led expeditions in the Brecon Beacons, and a life-long love of buildings and architecture through the churches and market towns where he lived reinforced, of course, by the beauties of the Oxford colleges.”

He completed Sixth Form and then took up a place at Oxford where he read Philosophy, Politics and Economics (PPE) at Brasenose, between 1952 and 1955, graduating with a First.

Mr Rutter had his first love of Germany during his National Service from 1955-1956 and his first acquaintance with Jo, who later became his wife of 50 years.

Germany was his second posting in the British Council after the birth of his son Orlando in Indonesia, and Mr Rutter and his wife regarded it as a second home for the rest of their lives.

He spoke German fluently and took enormous pleasure in the memories of his contribution to the mending of relations between Britain and Germany following the war.

He recalled often his luck that he and his wife were posted back to Germany at the time of the fall of the Berlin Wall because they flew to Berlin to take part in the celebrations.

Mr Rutter’s career in the British Council saw him involved in many aspects of its work in cultural diplomacy and English language teaching and he spent time as a representative in Singapore, Thailand and Germany.

After his retirement from the British Council, Mr Rutter and his wife lived in UK, Spain, Portugal and Germany. They eventually settled in Totnes, Devon, with Mr Rutter enjoying the cultural richness of Dartington Hall nearby.

He continued to search out architectural gems known and unknown all over Britain and Europe, and was always busy planning his next jaunt.

Orlando said: “My father was an enthusiast, gregarious, sociable, interested in the lives and the views of others.

“He was happiest sharing his life and his enthusiasms and gave encouragement and respect to others’ views, and his many friends responded to this.”

The bursary fund at Monmouth School for Boys benefits from donations and legacies from former pupils each year.

For more details about making a donation or a legacy, please contact Development Director, Mrs Clare Anning: anning.clare@habsmonmouth.org