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Who was Richard Lander?
Richard Lander was a Cornish explorer. The son of an Innkeeper, he was born in 1804 in what later became the Dolphin Inn, in Truro.
Lander’s ambition for his future began at an early age. He wanted to travel the world and realised that London was the place to be, to gain this experience. So at the age of 9, he walked to London and soon found himself on a ship headed for the West Indies. By the age of 19 he had also sailed to the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa.
Lander’s main achievement was to trace the course of the River Niger in Nigeria, all the way up to New Bussa where the Richard Lander Primary School now stands in recognition of his work. Tracing the course of the Niger opened up valuable trade links between West Africa and the rest of the world; trade links which still result in economic benefit, even today.
Richard Lander’s values are ones which fit our school very well. Our young people are encouraged to be ambitious, to set the highest standards for themselves and to develop the confidence and leadership skills to achieve them. Like Lander, we are all charged with making a positive contribution to the world in which we live, building towards a more caring, just and sustainable society.