Catholic schools in the United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom, there are many 'local authority maintained' (i.e. state funded) Roman Catholic schools. These are theoretically open to pupils of all faiths or none, although if the school is over-subscribed priority will be given to Roman Catholic children.
History
[edit]During the Reformation, Catholic schools were created on the European continent for the training of children of Catholic families from Britain. During the 18th century, colleges for the training of priests were created in Scotland, such as in Scalan and Lismore Seminary. After the Re-establishment of the English hierarchy and the Scottish hierarchy new schools were created. After the Education Act 1918 in Scotland and the Education Act 1944 in England and Wales, state-funded Catholic schools were built.[1][2] Nevertheless, today there has been some controversy over Roman Catholic schools. Some Labour backbenchers would like to see them closed along with all other faith-based schools, and this was the official policy of the Scottish Green Party at the 2007 Scottish Parliament election. Some local authorities – such as in Lanarkshire – have chosen to build so-called "shared campuses" where a Roman Catholic and non-denominational school share grounds, a building, and facilities such as canteen, sport halls etc., but lessons are taught separately. This policy has had mixed success – although supporters say it reduces the risk of "us and them" sectarianism, some shared campuses have suffered disruptions on opening.[3] At one stage the Scottish Catholic Church even considered legal action against North Lanarkshire Council to stop another "shared campus" being built.[4]
In Northern Ireland, Roman Catholic schools are state-funded and organised and run by the Council for Catholic Maintained Schools (CCMS).[5]
England and Wales
[edit]The Catholic Education Service provides the central co-ordination under the Bishops' Conference for Catholic schools in England and Wales. In England and Wales, Catholic schools come under the jurisdiction of their local diocese who can inspect the religious education and acts of worship of the school under Section 48 of the Education Act 2005. Many schools were also founded by religious orders who continue to maintain a presence, property ownership or trusteeship of their schools.[6]
In England and Wales are joint Anglican and Catholic schools. These include primary schools such as: All Saints, Cambridge; The Bishops’ School, Chelmsford; Emmaus School, Liverpool; The Faith School, Liverpool; St John’s Sunderland; Christ the King, Macclesfield. There is a joint middle school: St Edward’s Royal Free School, Windsor. Joint secondary schools and academies include: St Cuthbert Mayne School, Torquay; St Augustine, Taunton; St Bede, Cambridge; St Bede, Redhill; St Michael, Barnsley; St Edward, Poole; St Francis Xavier High School, Richmond, North Yorkshire; Emmaus, Sheffield; Holy Family College, Heywood, Rochdale; Christ’s College, Cheltenham; St Francis of Assisi, Liverpool; St Chad’s, Runcorn. In 2006, the first joint Church in Wales and Catholic school was opened in Wales: St Joseph’s, Wrexham.[7]
England
[edit]Bedfordshire
[edit]Diocese of Northampton
Berkshire
[edit]Diocese of Portsmouth
- Blessed Hugh Faringdon Catholic School
- The Marist School, Sunninghill (Marists)
- St Joseph's College, Reading
- St Mary's School Ascot
Bristol
[edit]Diocese of Clifton
Buckinghamshire
[edit]Diocese of Northampton
- St Michael's Catholic School, High Wycombe
- St Paul's Catholic School, Milton Keynes
- St Bernard's Catholic Grammar School
- St Joseph's Catholic High School, Slough
Cambridgeshire
[edit]Diocese of East Anglia
Cheshire
[edit]Diocese of Shrewsbury
- All Hallows Catholic College, Macclesfield
- Blessed Carlo Acutis Catholic and Church of England Academy
- Cardinal Newman Catholic High School, Warrington
- Chester Catholic High School
- Ellesmere Port Catholic High School
- St Gregory's Catholic High School
- St Nicholas Catholic High School
- St Thomas More Catholic School, Crewe
Diocese of Liverpool
Cumbria
[edit]Diocese of Lancaster
- Austin Friars
- St Benedict's Catholic High School, Hensingham
- St Bernard's Catholic High School
- St John Henry Newman Catholic School
- St Joseph's Catholic High School, Workington
Derbyshire
[edit]Diocese of Nottingham
- Saint Benedict Catholic Voluntary Academy
- St John Houghton Catholic Voluntary Academy
- St Philip Howard Catholic Voluntary Academy
- St Thomas More Catholic School, Buxton
Diocese of Hallam
- St Mary's Catholic High School, Chesterfield
- Barlborough Hall School (Jesuits)
- Mount St Mary's College (Jesuits)
Devon
[edit]Diocese of Plymouth
Dorset
[edit]Diocese of Plymouth
Diocese of Portsmouth
Durham
[edit]Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle
- Carmel College, Darlington
- English Martyrs School and Sixth Form College
- Our Lady and St Bede Catholic Academy
- St Bede's Catholic School and Sixth Form College
- St Bede's Catholic School, Peterlee
- St John's Catholic School
- St Leonard's Catholic School, Durham
- St Michael's Catholic Academy, Billingham
Essex
[edit]Diocese of Brentwood
- Brentwood Ursuline Convent High School (Brentwood Ursulines)
- De La Salle School, Basildon (Lasallian Brothers)
- Grays Convent High School
- New Hall School
- St Benedict's Catholic College
- St Bernard's High School, Westcliff-on-Sea
- St John Payne Catholic School
- St John's Roman Catholic School, Essex
- St Mark's West Essex Catholic School
- St Thomas More High School
Gloucestershire
[edit]Diocese of Clifton
- All Saints' Academy, Cheltenham (joint Anglican)
- St Edward's School, Cheltenham
- St Peter's High School, Gloucester
Greater Manchester
[edit]Diocese of Salford
- St Damian's Roman Catholic Science College, Ashton-under-Lyne
- Thornleigh Salesian College, Bolton
- Holy Cross College, Bury
- St Gabriel's Roman Catholic High School, Bury
- St Thomas More Roman Catholic College, Denton
- The Barlow Roman Catholic High School, Didsbury
- St Patrick's Roman Catholic High School, Eccles
- Mount St Joseph School, Farnworth
- Holy Family Roman Catholic and Church of England College, Heywood
- St Joseph's Roman Catholic High School, Horwich
- Loreto College, Manchester
- Our Lady's Roman Catholic High School, Manchester
- St Bede's College, Manchester
- St Matthew's Roman Catholic High School, Manchester
- St Peter's Roman Catholic High School, Manchester
- Xaverian College, Manchester
- Blessed John Henry Newman Roman Catholic College, Oldham
- St Monica's High School, Prestwich
- All Hallows Roman Catholic High School, Salford
- St Anne's RC Voluntary Academy, Stockport
- Stella Maris School, Stockport
- St Antony's Roman Catholic School, Urmston
- St Ambrose Barlow Roman Catholic High School, Wardley
Diocese of Shrewsbury
- All Saints Catholic College, Dukinfield
- Aquinas College, Stockport
- Blessed Thomas Holford Catholic College
- Harrytown Catholic High School
- Loreto Grammar School
- St Ambrose College
- St James' Catholic High School, Stockport
- St Paul's Catholic High School
Archdiocese of Liverpool
- St Edmund Arrowsmith Catholic High School, Ashton-in-Makerfield
- St John Fisher Catholic High School, Wigan
- St Mary's Catholic High School, Astley
- St Peter's Catholic High School
Hampshire
[edit]- All Hallows Catholic School
- Alton School
- Bishop Challoner Catholic Secondary School
- Farleigh School
- Farnborough Hill
- Oaklands Catholic School
- St Anne's Catholic School, Southampton
- St Edmund's Catholic School, Portsmouth
- Saint George Catholic College
- Salesian College, Farnborough
Hertfordshire
[edit]- Loreto College, St Albans (Loreto Sisters)
- Nicholas Breakspear School
- St Joan of Arc Catholic School, Rickmansworth
- St Mary's Catholic School, Bishop's Stortford
- St Columba's College, St Albans
- St Edmund's College, Ware
Isle of Wight
[edit]Kent
[edit]- St Anselm's Catholic School
- St Edmund's Catholic School, Dover
- St Gregory's Catholic School
- St John's Catholic Comprehensive School
- St John Fisher Catholic School
- St Simon Stock Catholic School
- Ursuline College, Westgate-on-Sea (Ursulines)
Lancashire
[edit]Diocese of Lancaster
- Cardinal Allen Catholic High School
- Cardinal Newman College
- Christ the King Catholic High School, Preston
- Corpus Christi Catholic High School, Fulwood
- Our Lady's Catholic College
- Our Lady's Catholic High School, Fulwood
- St Bede's Catholic High School, Lytham St Annes
- St Mary's Catholic Academy
Archdiocese of Liverpool
- All Hallows Catholic High School
- Holy Cross Catholic High School, Chorley
- Our Lady Queen of Peace Catholic Engineering College
- St Bede's Catholic High School, Ormskirk
- St Mary's Catholic High School, Leyland
Diocese of Salford
- Mount Carmel Roman Catholic High School
- Brownedge St Mary's Catholic High School
- Our Lady and St John Catholic College
- St Mary's College, Blackburn
- Blessed Trinity Roman Catholic College
- Ss John Fisher and Thomas More Roman Catholic High School, Colne
- St Cecilia's Roman Catholic High School, Longridge
- All Saints' Catholic High School, Rawtenstall
- Stonyhurst College (Jesuits)
- Stonyhurst Saint Mary's Hall (Jesuits)
Leicestershire
[edit]Diocese of Nottingham
- De Lisle College
- English Martyrs Catholic School
- Ratcliffe College
- St Martin's Catholic Academy
- St Paul's Catholic School, Leicester
Lincolnshire
[edit]Diocese of Nottingham
- Beacon Academy, Cleethorpes
- St Bede's Catholic Voluntary Academy
- St Peter and St Paul's Catholic Voluntary Academy
London
[edit]Archdiocese of Westminster
- Our Lady of Lourdes School, Arnos Grove
- Sacred Heart Primary School, Teddington
- All Saints Catholic College, North Kensington
- St Edmund's Roman Catholic Primary School
- Bishop Challoner Catholic School
- Bishop Douglass Catholic School
- Cardinal Pole Catholic School
- Cardinal Vaughan Memorial School
- The Cardinal Wiseman Catholic School, Greenford
- The Douay Martyrs School
- St Augustine's Priory, Ealing
- St Benedict's School, Ealing (Benedictines)
- Finchley Catholic High School
- Gumley House Convent School
- Gunnersbury Catholic School
- John F Kennedy Catholic School
- The John Henry Newman School
- La Sainte Union Catholic School
- London Oratory School
- Maria Fidelis Roman Catholic Convent School
- Mount House School
- Newman Catholic College
- Our Lady's Catholic High School, Stamford Hill
- Sacred Heart High School, Hammersmith
- Sacred Heart Language College
- St Anthony's School, Hampstead
- St Aloysius' College, Highgate
- St Angela's Ursuline School
- St Anne's Catholic High School
- St Claudine's Catholic School for Girls
- St Dominic's Sixth Form College
- St George's Catholic School
- St Gregory's Catholic Science College
- St Ignatius College, Enfield (Jesuits)
- St James' Catholic High School, Colindale
- St Mark's Catholic School, Hounslow
- St Michael's Catholic Grammar School
- St Michael's Catholic High School
- St Paul's College, Sunbury-on-Thames
- St Richard Reynolds Catholic College
- Salvatorian College
- St Thomas More Language College
- St Catherine's School, Twickenham
- Westminster Cathedral Choir School
- St Thomas More Catholic School, Wood Green
Archdiocese of Southwark
- Bishop Challoner School
- Bishop Thomas Grant School
- Bonus Pastor Catholic College
- The Cedars School
- Christ the King Sixth Form College
- Coloma Convent Girls' School
- Donhead Preparatory School (Jesuits)
- Holy Cross School, New Malden
- Holy Cross Preparatory School
- The John Fisher School
- La Retraite Roman Catholic Girls' School (La Retraite Sisters)
- The Laurels School
- Marymount International School London (Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary)
- Notre Dame Roman Catholic Girls' School
- Richard Challoner School
- Sacred Heart Catholic School, Camberwell
- St Catherine's Catholic School for Girls
- St Columba's Catholic Boys' School
- St Francis Xavier College, Clapham
- St John Bosco College, Battersea
- St Joseph's College, Upper Norwood (Lasallian Brothers)
- St Mary's Catholic High School, Croydon
- St Matthew Academy
- St Michael's Catholic College
- St Paul's Academy, Abbey Wood
- St Philomena's Catholic High School for Girls
- St Thomas More Catholic School, Eltham
- St Thomas the Apostle College
- St Ursula's Convent School
- Thomas More Catholic School, Purley
- Ursuline High School, Wimbledon (Ursulines)
- Wimbledon College (Jesuits)
Diocese of Brentwood
- All Saints Catholic School, Dagenham
- The Campion School, Hornchurch
- Holy Family Catholic School, Walthamstow
- The Palmer Catholic Academy
- Sacred Heart of Mary Girls' School
- St Bonaventure's
- Trinity Catholic High School, Woodford Green
- Ursuline Academy Ilford
Merseyside
[edit]Archdiocese of Liverpool
- St Mary's College, Crosby
- The Academy of St Francis of Assisi (Joint Anglican)
- The Academy of St Nicholas (Joint Anglican)
- All Saints Catholic High School, Kirkby
- Archbishop Beck Catholic College
- Bellerive FCJ Catholic College (FCJ)
- Broughton Hall High School
- Cardinal Heenan Catholic High School
- Carmel College (St Helens)
- Christ the King Catholic High School, Southport
- De La Salle School, St Helens
- Holy Family Catholic High School, Thornton
- Hope Academy
- Maricourt Catholic School
- Notre Dame Catholic College, Liverpool
- Sacred Heart Catholic College
- St Augustine of Canterbury Catholic Academy
- St Cuthbert's Catholic High School
- St Edmund Arrowsmith Catholic Academy, Whiston
- St Edward's College
- St Francis Xavier's College, Liverpool (La Mennais Brothers)
- St John Bosco Arts College
- St Julie's Catholic High School
- The Salesian Academy of St John Bosco (Salesians)
Diocese of Shrewsbury
Norfolk
[edit]Diocese of East Anglia
- Notre Dame High School, Norwich
- St Bede's Inter-Church School (Joint Anglican)
Northamptonshire
[edit]Diocese of Northampton
Northumberland
[edit]Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle
Nottinghamshire
[edit]Diocese of Nottingham
- All Saints' Catholic Academy
- The Becket School
- Christ the King Catholic Voluntary Academy
- Loughborough Amherst School
- Trinity School, Nottingham
Oxfordshire
[edit]Archdiocese of Birmingham
Diocese of Portsmouth
Shropshire
[edit]Diocese of Shrewsbury
Somerset
[edit]- All Hallows Preparatory School
- Downside School (Benedictines)
- Prior Park College
- Saint Gregory's Catholic College
Staffordshire
[edit]Archdiocese of Birmingham
- Blessed William Howard Catholic School
- Cardinal Griffin Catholic College
- Holy Trinity Catholic Academy of Stafford and Stone
- Painsley Catholic College
- St Dominic's Grammar School
- St Dominic's Priory School, Stone
- St John Fisher Catholic College
- St Joseph's College, Stoke-on-Trent
- St Margaret Ward Catholic Academy
- St Thomas More Catholic Academy
Diocese of Nottingham
Suffolk
[edit]Diocese of East Anglia
- Moreton Hall, Bury St Edmunds
- St Alban's Catholic High School, Ipswich
- St Benedict's Catholic School
- St Joseph's College, Ipswich
Surrey
[edit]Diocese of Arundel and Brighton
- Notre Dame School, Surrey
- St Andrew's Catholic School
- St Bede's School
- St Dominic's School
- St George's College, Weybridge (Josephites)
- St John's Beaumont School (Jesuits)
- St John the Baptist School, Woking
- St Peter's Catholic School, Guildford
- St Teresa's School Effingham
- Salesian School, Chertsey (Salesians)
- Woldingham School (Society of the Sacred Heart of Jesus)
Sussex
[edit]Diocese of Arundel and Brighton
- Cardinal Newman Catholic School, Hove
- Mayfield School, East Sussex
- Our Lady of Sion School
- St Oscar Romero Catholic School
- St Paul's Catholic College, Burgess Hill
- St Philip Howard Catholic High School
- St Richard's Catholic College
- St Wilfrid's Catholic School, Crawley
- Towers Convent School
- Worth School
Tyne and Wear
[edit]Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle
- Cardinal Hume Catholic School
- Sacred Heart Catholic High School, Newcastle upon Tyne
- St Aidan's Catholic Academy
- St Anthony's Girls' Catholic Academy
- St Cuthbert's High School
- St Joseph's Catholic Academy
- St Mary's Catholic School, Newcastle upon Tyne
- St Robert of Newminster Catholic School
- St Thomas More Catholic School, Blaydon
- St Thomas More Roman Catholic Academy, North Shields
- St Wilfrid's Roman Catholic College
Warwickshire
[edit]Archdiocese of Birmingham
- Princethorpe College
- St Mary Immaculate Catholic Primary School
- St Thomas More Catholic School, Nuneaton
- Trinity Catholic School
West Midlands
[edit]Archdiocese of Birmingham
- Archbishop Ilsley Catholic School
- Bishop Challoner Catholic College
- Bishop Milner Catholic College
- Bishop Ullathorne Roman Catholic School
- Bishop Walsh Catholic School
- Cardinal Newman Catholic School and Community College
- Cardinal Wiseman Catholic School, Coventry
- Cardinal Wiseman Catholic School, Birmingham
- Holy Trinity Catholic School, Birmingham
- John Henry Newman Catholic College
- The Oratory Preparatory School
- The Oratory School
- Our Lady and St Chad Catholic Academy
- St Edmund Campion Catholic School
- St Edmund's Catholic Academy
- St Francis of Assisi Catholic College
- St John Wall Catholic School
- St Paul's School for Girls, Birmingham
- St Peter's Catholic School, Solihull
- St Thomas Aquinas Catholic School, Birmingham
- St Thomas More Catholic School, Willenhall
- Stuart Bathurst Catholic High School
Wiltshire
[edit]Diocese of Clifton
- St Augustine's Catholic College
- St Joseph's Catholic College
- St Joseph's Catholic School, Laverstock
- St Benedict's Catholic High School, Alcester
Worcestershire
[edit]Archdiocese of Birmingham
- Blessed Edward Oldcorne Catholic College
- Hagley Roman Catholic High School
- St Augustine's High School, Redditch
Yorkshire
[edit]Diocese of Leeds
- All Saints, Huddersfield
- Cardinal Heenan, Meanwood
- Corpus Christi, Leeds
- Mount St Mary's, Leeds
- Notre Dame, Leeds
- St Bede's & St Joseph's, Bradford
- St Catherine's, Halifax
- St John Fisher, Dewsbury
- St John Fisher, Harrogate
- St John's School for the Deaf, Boston Spa
- St Mary's Menston
- St Thomas à Becket, Wakefield
- St Wilfrid's, Featherstone
Diocese of Middlesbrough
- Ampleforth College (Benedictines)
- All Saints Roman Catholic School, York
- Sacred Heart Catholic Secondary
- St Augustine's Catholic School
- St Francis Xavier School, North Yorkshire
- St Mary's College, Hull
- St Patrick's Catholic College
- St Peter's Catholic College, South Bank
- Trinity Catholic College, Middlesbrough
Diocese of Hallam
- All Saints Catholic High School, Sheffield
- Holy Trinity Catholic and Church of England School
- The McAuley Catholic High School
- Notre Dame High School, Sheffield
- St Bernard's Catholic High School, Rotherham
- Saint Pius X Catholic High School, Rotherham
- St Theresa's Catholic Primary School
Wales
[edit]- St Richard Gwyn High School, Barry
- Archbishop McGrath High School, Bridgend
- Corpus Christi High School, Cardiff
- St David's Sixth Form College, Cardiff
- St Illtyd's High School, Cardiff
- St John's College, Cardiff
- St John Lloyd Comprehensive School, Llanelli
- St Mary's High School, Lugwardine
- Bishop Hedley High School, Merthyr Tydfil
- St John's High School, Newport
- St Alban's High School, Pontypool
- Cardinal Newman School, Rhydyfelin
- Bishop Vaughan School, Swansea
- Mary Immaculate High School, Wenvoe
Scotland
[edit]After the Education Act 1918, many state-funded Scottish Catholic schools were started. Nevertheless, there exist Catholic independent schools such as St Aloysius' College, Glasgow, Fernhill School, Rutherglen, and Kilgraston School. During the Scottish Reformation, while there were no Catholic seminaries in England and Wales, there was a number of Scottish seminaries before the restoration of the Scottish Catholic hierarchy. Notable Scottish Catholic schools today include:
- Aberdeen
- Dumfries and Galloway
- Dundee
- East Ayrshire
- East Dunbartonshire
- East Renfrewshire
- Edinburgh
- Holy Rood High School, Edinburgh
- St Augustine's High School, Edinburgh
- St Thomas of Aquin's High School
- Fife
- Glasgow
- All Saints Roman Catholic Secondary School
- Cardinal Winning Secondary School
- Holyrood Secondary School
- John Paul Academy
- Lourdes Secondary School
- Notre Dame High School, Glasgow
- St Aloysius' College, Glasgow
- St Andrew's Secondary School, Glasgow
- St Margaret Mary's Secondary School
- St Mungo's Academy
- St Paul's High School, Glasgow
- St Roch's Secondary School
- St Thomas Aquinas Secondary School, Glasgow
- Inverclyde
- Midlothian
- North Ayrshire
- North Lanarkshire
- Cardinal Newman High School, Bellshill
- Our Lady's High School, Cumbernauld
- Our Lady's High School, Motherwell
- St Aidan's High School
- St. Maurice's High School
- Taylor High School, New Stevenston
- Perth and Kinross
- Renfrewshire
- South Ayrshire
- South Lanarkshire
- Fernhill School, Rutherglen
- Holy Cross High School, Hamilton
- St Andrew's and St Bride's High School
- Saint John Ogilvie High School
- Trinity High School, Rutherglen
- Stirling
- West Dunbartonshire
- West Lothian
See also
[edit]- Catholic Church in England and Wales
- Catholic Church in Scotland
- Catholic Church in Northern Ireland
- Selective Catholic schools
- List of Catholic churches in the United Kingdom
References
[edit]- ^ Williamson, Clifford (2016). The History of Catholic Intellectual Life in Scotland, 1918–1965. London: Palgrave, Macmillan. p. 55. ISBN 9781137333476. Retrieved 23 June 2022.
- ^ McCormack, Maeve (7 May 2011). "The continuing tradition of Catholic education". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 June 2022.
- ^ "Church examining schools decision". BBC News. 15 September 2004. Retrieved 12 December 2005.
- ^ "Council dampens campus fears". BBC News. 22 January 2004. Retrieved 12 December 2005.
- ^ Council for Catholic Maintained Schools (Northern Ireland) (retrieved 19 June 2007)
- ^ "About Us". Roe UK. Retrieved 6 February 2025.
- ^ "Joint Anglican-Roman Catholic Schools". Churches Together in England. Retrieved 6 February 2025.