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EX-PUPIL LEAVES METHODIST COLLEGE £13.5M IN WILL

Published
20 May 2021

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Image caption,
The donation is the largest in the school's 150-year history
By Chris Andrews
BBC News NI


A former Methodist College Belfast pupil has left the school a
"transformational" donation of £13.5m in his will, its principal has said.

Richard Henry Kerr, who was known to his family as Prescott, was a boarder in
the 1940s.

He founded a business which specialised in the nutrients in agricultural feed.

Scott Naismith said it was the largest donation in Methody's 156-year history
and would be used to "support the life and work of the college".

He said the school's governors agreed, "in keeping with [Mr Kerr's] interests",
that a proportion of the money would be used for "the promotion of pupil mental
health and wellbeing, improving the learning environment through contributions
to capital development projects and enhancing the opportunities for pupils of
modest means".

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Media caption,

Prescott Kerr's donation will benefit current and future pupils at the school,
says principal Scott Naismith

"Prescott cared deeply about those he loved and gave generously of his time and
himself to support and care for them," he added.



"He also wanted to leave behind a legacy that would help to ensure that pupils
who attended Methody would be supported in and out of the classroom to thrive
and succeed."

Methodist College is one of Northern Ireland's largest schools, with about 1,800
pupils.


'PROFOUNDLY GRATEFUL'

Mr Kerr came from a farming background and attended both Queen's University
Belfast and Cornell University in Ithaca, New York.

He worked for Cockburns of Banbridge, producing vitamin feeds for agricultural
foods, said Mr Naismith, and later set up his own business Newtech in 1985.

He died in Dartmouth in England on 24 January 2019.

Methodist College said he "excelled academically as well as enjoying rowing in
the college eight and playing rugby" during his time at the south Belfast
school.



"Throughout our history, Methody has benefitted from the generosity of past
pupils who have made significant, philanthropic contributions to support the
development of the school and enhance the opportunities of our pupils," Mr
Naismith said in a video posted on the school's website.

"School development is neverending, and the entire college community is
profoundly grateful to Richard Henry (Prescott) Kerr."


RELATED TOPICS

 * Belfast
 * NI education





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