Brothers make it a hat trick
08 Jul 2025
The Tipping brothers – Andrew, Paul and Simon – are memorable in their own right and as three high achieving siblings.
They each achieved one or more scholarships during their years at Christ’s College and went on to make their mark in their respective careers.
Sir Andrew (6706) was one of the longest serving judges in New Zealand, Paul (6705) is a former Rhodes scholar who carved a career with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, while Simon (6963) took early retirement from his job as Associate Professor at the Massey University Music Conservatorium to undertake voluntary work in Tonga.
The brothers recall that their parents had their hearts set on the boys attending College. Once the Tipping parents had decided to return to New Zealand from UK (their father was a Kiwi from Hawkes Bay), they wrote to the headmasters of King’s School in Auckland, Whanganui Collegiate and Christ’s College to ask what sort of education the schools could offer their three sons. Apparently, the most promising reply was from then College Headmaster Reg Hornsby. On the strength of this, the family settled in Christchurch.
Attending College meant a lot to Paul: “At first, I thought of College as just another secondary school, but in my final year it began to dawn on me that I had been given an education with special and valuable characteristics. The Christian focus of College certainly was one aspect that shaped my subsequent life.”
Simon believes that College set him up for an interesting and varied life, and endorses Paul’s view that the Christian ethos of College has been important to his life’s journey.
Andrew, Paul and Simon agree that offering scholarships is vital.
“If attendance is confined to those families who can afford the fees, social exclusiveness is reinforced, and the school will lack a degree of healthy diversity in its makeup,” Simon says.
“Scholarships ensure that at least a few boys who could not ordinarily have attended, will have the opportunity to do so. This works both ways – it’s great for the scholarship-holders, but also great for the boys at College to get along with others from a different background.”
Simon is pleased to see that scholarships are now given for subjects such as music – “in my day it was just the core curriculum”.