New Bursary in Memory of OV Norman Trapé

We are delighted to announce that, due to the generosity of OV Michael Pimley (H 61-71), a new bursary has been created. The Trapé Bursary, given by Michael Pimley, will provide a child with seven years of fully funded education at King’s from September 2024.

The idea behind this grant is that it will provide the opportunity of an education at King’s to a child attending a local primary school, who would not otherwise be in a position to consider such an education, giving them the opportunity to benefit from everything on offer at one of the top ten independent schools in the West Midlands.

Michael says of the grant, “I have worked with the Headmaster and the Alumni Team at King’s to develop a bursary in memory of the Trapé family. I attended King’s with the late Norman Trapé, and his brother John, both of whom became life-long friends. Norman firmly forged the link between the Pimley and Trapé families – our fathers had been at King’s together in the 1930s – becoming my brother-in-law when he married my sister Sally. I know he would wholeheartedly support the provision of this bursary in recognition of the education King’s gave to us and the doors this opened in our future careers.”

Norman Trapé OBE (S 67-71) passed away in 2021 due to lung cancer. He relished his time at King’s, during which he had been elected a King’s Scholar and voted Head of School. In addition to these achievements, he was also in the 1st XV and the Cricket 1st XI, instilling a love for both sports that never left him. Following King’s, Norman went to Magdalene College Cambridge and spent a fourth year at Freiburg University, from there to the Royal Hong Kong Police for three years as an Inspector working in the Special Branch. Norman married Sally Pimley in Worcester Cathedral in 1982, by which time he had joined the Ministry of Defence, and after which he served in the UK and at the British Embassies in Paris and Moscow.

Norman credited the lessons and role models at King’s with teaching him how to work with others, how to study wisely, and how to try and be a decent human being. His family and friends would heartily concur he made a good job of it; another reason Michael was inspired to create a bursary in Norman’s and his family’s name.

The Headmaster of The King’s School, Gareth Doodes, has been in ongoing discussions with Michael regarding this generous donation to King’s School, about which he said, “Our pupil bursaries are incredibly important in enabling bright children whose families do not have the financial means to attend our school. King’s has a strong history of providing educational opportunities and we are very proud of this legacy. Having a bursary to come to King’s makes a huge and long-lasting impact on the lives of these pupils and I would like to extend my personal thanks to Michael for his generosity in this regard, and his appreciation of the importance of our Bursary Programme.”

Photo of OV Ian Smith (Cr 73-78) and OV Michael Pimley (H 61-71) at the recent OV Reunion in Princeton, generously hosted by Michael. 

King’s bursaries really do change lives; should you wish to know more about supporting bursaries, please contact alumni@ksw.org.uk, phone 01905 721719 or visit our ‘Donate’ page for more details.