 His brother, Sir Algernon West, was Principal Private Secretary to Prime minister William Ewart Gladstone.Richard West was educated at Christ Church, Oxford, and was appointed as a Student of Christ Church (the equivalent of a Fellow at other colleges) in 1848, a position that he held until 1875.He was ordained as a priest in the Church of England, and served as curate of a number of churches, including the London church of All Saints, Margaret Street.