St Mary's Catholic Comprehensive School

Infobox UK school
name = St Mary's Catholic Comprehensive School


size =
latitude = 55.00717
longitude = -1.59385
dms = dms
motto = "Auxilium Christianorum"
motto_pl =
established = 1954
approx =
closed =
c_approx =
type =
religion = Roman Catholic
president =
head_label = Headteacher
head = Mr John Foster
r_head_label =
r_head =
chair_label =
chair =
founder =
founder_pl =
specialist = Humanities College
specialist_pl =
street = Benton Park Road
city = Longbenton, Newcastle upon Tyne
county = Tyne and Wear
country = England
postcode = NE7 7PE
LEA = Newcastle upon Tyne
ofsted = 108534
staff =
enrollment = 942cite web|url=http://schoolsfinder.direct.gov.uk/3914714/overview/ |title=School Overview 2006/2007 |accessdate=2006-12-31 |publisher=Directgov]
gender = Coeducational
lower_age = 11
upper_age = 18
houses =
colours =
publication =
free_label_1 =
free_1 =
free_label_2 =
free_2 =
free_label_3 =
free_3 =
website = http://www.stmonline.net/
website_name =

St Mary's Catholic Comprehensive School is an English secondary school in Longbenton, Newcastle, England.

History

St Mary's started life as a Technical School for boys in 1954, and was located on Bath Lane off Westgate Road in Newcastle until the early 1970s. As a result of the re-organisation of Catholic Schools in 1977 St Mary's became a Catholic School for boys and girls. The school was based on three sites, one in Longbenton, one in Walker and one in Killingworth. These three sites were brought together some years later to its current site in Longbenton and is now the only Catholic co-educational secondary school in Newcastle. The school is part of the family of Catholic schools in the Diocese of Hexham and Newcastle and plays a full and active part in this diverse community of schools.

St Mary's now has a thriving community of around 1000 students and 100 staff. The site has been developed to provide a wide range of opportunities for young people. In recent years they have extended and upgraded facilities for Science, Design and Technology, Information and Communications Technology, Drama and Music. They have also provided new dining facilities and a Chapel which provides a space for prayer and reflection.cite web|url=http://www.stmonline.net/information |title=School School Information Page |accessdate=2006-12-31 |publisher=stmonline.net]

In 2004 a reunion was held to commemorate 50 years since the school opened, and 25 years as a mixed school.

Achievements

In July 2007 the school was awarded Humanities College status by the government, and given an additional £500,000 to develop further expertise in English, Religious Education and the Performing Arts cite web|url=http://www.newcastle.gov.uk/press.nsf/newsbyid/54E7AD3EA886F5B28025730D00477C32?opendocument |title=Newcastle Council Press Release |accessdate=2007-11-18 |publisher=newcastle.gov.uk] . The school has also been awarded the Arts Mark, and has the Healthy Schools Award. Its website has also won the purpleyouth.com Bronze award for best school website.cite web|url=http://www.stmonline.net/information/awards |title=School School Information - Awards Page |accessdate=2006-12-31 |publisher=stmonline.net] It is currently attempting to achieve FairTrade status.

The previous headmaster, Mr O'Grady, was the tallest headmaster in Europe.

Emblem, Logos and Identities

The Fleur-de-lis contained within the arms of St Mary's is the symbol most commonly used by the school, and is used on letterheads and newsletters as the logo. The lily represents the Mother of God and the three castles represent the city of Newcastle upon Tyne. The present arms of the school were designed by the long serving Art teacher John Croney and replaced an earlier version. The motto of St Mary's is "Auxilium Christianorum" a title of the Blessed Virgin Mary from the Litany of Loretto. The motto appears to have fallen into desuetude. The school's website makes use of another logo, which is used throughout the website as a kind of 'brand'.

The school tie is composed of silver and blue diagonal stripes. The colours are taken from the lower part of the school arms.

The lower school uniform is blue jumpers, school tie and a blazer, however this is replaced in year 9 where the students are switched to a red jumper with the school emblem.

References

External links

* [http://www.stmonline.net St Mary's Catholic Comprehensive School Website]
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/6212015.stm BBC News Article] - BBC News Article - St Marys' participation in Operation 60 GCSE.