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Cardinal Newman Catholic High School (Luton)
Encyclopedia
Cardinal Newman Catholic High School, also referred to as Newman or CNS is a Roman Catholic Voluntary aided secondary school
and sixth form
catering for pupils aged between 11 and 18, located in the Warden Hills
area of Luton
, England
. Opened in September 1969, the current Headteacher is Mrs Jane Crow, with the deputy heads being Mrs Fleur Musonda, and Ms Lorraine Croft. There are currently over 1400 students on role. The school is named after the famous cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church, Blessed John Henry Newman.
Being the only Roman Catholic secondary school in the whole of Luton, the school is constantly oversubscribed with over 400 applicants yearly, yet with only 242 places to offer. Cardinal Newman is also currently the only secondary school in Luton to have its own sixth form
, and this has over 150 places to offer students from both inside and outside the school. The current Head of Sixth Form is Mrs Michelle Chappel and from September 2009 will be Mrs Gail Hickman. Mrs Chappell is moving on to a more senior position within the school while Mrs Hickman is coming across to the Sixth Form after spending many years in the CNS Geography department.
In the early years there were three houses identified by a colour rather than by a name or title.
s of Westminster
. These are Wiseman (W), Hinsley
(H), Manning (M), Vaughan (V), Godfrey (G), Griffin
(Gr), Heenan (He) and Hume (Hu). A new form was created in 2007 called John Paul (JP) for the year 8's at that time. When the school was first founded there were only six tutor groups. Since the opening two more tutor groups have been added (Heenan and Hume). In Year 8, (current year 11s) (2006-2011) a ninth tutor has been added. This ninth tutor is only in yr 11 and no other years have it. It is called John Paul after Pope John Paul II.
Each tutor group has a tutor who looks after affairs in the tutor group, and each year has a Head Of Year (HOY) and a member of the Senior Leadership Team (SLT) as a link from pupils to staff. The HOY deals with year group issues including inter-tutor competitions and activities as well as behaviour and rewards.
Every tutor group has a captain, a vice captain and boys and girls sports captains. These responsible students help the tutor organise tutorgroup activities or sports teams for competitions and so on. In Year 11, pupils are given the opportunity to become prefects, giving them experience of responsibility and leadership skills. The prefects are managed by the HOY and the Head Boys and Girls. Senior prefects are prefects that have shown great responsibility and who help out a lot with yeargroup or school activities.
For lessons, the tutor groups are split in half by House, with W, H, M and V on one side and menzel G, Gr, He and Hu on the other. This determines the timetable for the tutorgroup, with one half doing lessons together and the other with their half. W, H, M, V are the 'German' Half while G, Gr, He, and Hu are the 'French' half. This means that one side take German
as a Modern Foreign Language, while the other takes French
. The main lessons shared by each half are English
, Maths, PE
, DT, French
and German
. The only lesson that isn't affected by this grouping is Science
. All other lessons are taught in separate tutor groups.
In Year 10 and 11, the House groupings change for all subjects with option groups for GCSE determining the mix of students in a lesson. The option groups then in turn affect the lesson timetable, with the House groupings only affecting registrations and PE groups.
In the sixth form, there is the lower and upper sixth (Year 12 and 13 respectively) and these years are again split up into Tutor Groups, which are named after notable saints including St Patrick, St Jerome, St David, St George, St Cecilia, St Thomas-Aquinas, St Michael
and St Catherine. Each tutor group is a mix of members of both the upper and lower sixth so as to promote communication and friendship between both yeargroups.
The Head of Sixth Form basically runs what happens within the sixth form, but the sixth formers have their own committee, The Executive, or 'Exec' for short. This committee, in theory, meets with the Head of Sixth Form every week to discuss any problems within the sixth form or any activities coming up or being planned, such as sixth social..
The school has recently acquired Specialist Science Status
with Mathematics
. This award has given the school funding to build and complete a new sixth form and science block extension, install a new computer and server network across the whole school, install brand new equipment including SMART Boards in many classrooms, purchase new equipment in many departments, epecially in maths and science and the renovation of certain areas of the school site including the PE block.
The school is also currently finishing a four year plan, connected with the attainment of specialist science status, to increase the involvement of the local feeder schools and local employers, so as to raise levels of achievement especially in science and maths. Cardinal Newman is also part of the multi-million pound scheme to regenerate schools in Luton and several parts of the school including the 'Main Block' and the 'Science Block' would be scheduled to be rebuilt in the coming years.
report gave the school an excellent feedback, including talking about the 'good quality of the teaching in lessons' and the 'very good management and leadership in the school'. Main areas for improvement included the ICT
Provision and the induction process of new students. These areas and others, are currently being addressed and substantially improved with the help of funding and support from the feeder schools and the board of governors
.http://www.cardinalnewman.luton.sch.uk/ofsted.html. Cardinal Newman is currently ranked in the top 3 for KS3
and GCSE results in Luton, and 1109 out of 3579 in England. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/bsp/hi/education/03/school_tables/secondary_schools/html/821_4606.stm
Secondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
and sixth form
Sixth form
In the education systems of England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, and of Commonwealth West Indian countries such as Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Belize, Jamaica and Malta, the sixth form is the final two years of secondary education, where students, usually sixteen to eighteen years of age,...
catering for pupils aged between 11 and 18, located in the Warden Hills
Warden Hills
Warden Hills is an area of Luton, which is named after the hills overlooking it. Formerly part of a village called Streatley, until the 1960s, Warden Hills has become one of the fastest-growing areas of Luton in the past 50 years....
area of Luton
Luton
Luton is a large town and unitary authority of Bedfordshire, England, 30 miles north of London. Luton and its near neighbours, Dunstable and Houghton Regis, form the Luton/Dunstable Urban Area with a population of about 250,000....
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. Opened in September 1969, the current Headteacher is Mrs Jane Crow, with the deputy heads being Mrs Fleur Musonda, and Ms Lorraine Croft. There are currently over 1400 students on role. The school is named after the famous cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church, Blessed John Henry Newman.
Being the only Roman Catholic secondary school in the whole of Luton, the school is constantly oversubscribed with over 400 applicants yearly, yet with only 242 places to offer. Cardinal Newman is also currently the only secondary school in Luton to have its own sixth form
Sixth form
In the education systems of England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, and of Commonwealth West Indian countries such as Barbados, Trinidad and Tobago, Belize, Jamaica and Malta, the sixth form is the final two years of secondary education, where students, usually sixteen to eighteen years of age,...
, and this has over 150 places to offer students from both inside and outside the school. The current Head of Sixth Form is Mrs Michelle Chappel and from September 2009 will be Mrs Gail Hickman. Mrs Chappell is moving on to a more senior position within the school while Mrs Hickman is coming across to the Sixth Form after spending many years in the CNS Geography department.
School life and Houses
The school was in fact opened in September 1968 under the headship of Mr William Davies. When the school opened there were only two year groups, the first year as it was called then which had five classes and a second year consisting of pupils who had already completed their first year in other non-catholic senior schools in the town. Year two had three classes. It was not until September 1971 that the school had year groups from one to five. The Sixth Form was opened in September 1974.In the early years there were three houses identified by a colour rather than by a name or title.
Main school
Cardinal and each are split into eight tutor groups or Houses, which are named after notable cardinalCardinal (Catholicism)
A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...
s of Westminster
Westminster Cathedral
Westminster Cathedral in London is the mother church of the Catholic community in England and Wales and the Metropolitan Church and Cathedral of the Archbishop of Westminster...
. These are Wiseman (W), Hinsley
Arthur Hinsley
Arthur Hinsley was an English prelate of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Westminster from 1935 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1937.-Biography:...
(H), Manning (M), Vaughan (V), Godfrey (G), Griffin
Bernard Griffin
Bernard William Griffin was an English Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He served as Archbishop of Westminster from 1943 until his death, and was elevated to the cardinalate in 1946 by Pope Pius XII.-Biography:...
(Gr), Heenan (He) and Hume (Hu). A new form was created in 2007 called John Paul (JP) for the year 8's at that time. When the school was first founded there were only six tutor groups. Since the opening two more tutor groups have been added (Heenan and Hume). In Year 8, (current year 11s) (2006-2011) a ninth tutor has been added. This ninth tutor is only in yr 11 and no other years have it. It is called John Paul after Pope John Paul II.
Each tutor group has a tutor who looks after affairs in the tutor group, and each year has a Head Of Year (HOY) and a member of the Senior Leadership Team (SLT) as a link from pupils to staff. The HOY deals with year group issues including inter-tutor competitions and activities as well as behaviour and rewards.
Every tutor group has a captain, a vice captain and boys and girls sports captains. These responsible students help the tutor organise tutorgroup activities or sports teams for competitions and so on. In Year 11, pupils are given the opportunity to become prefects, giving them experience of responsibility and leadership skills. The prefects are managed by the HOY and the Head Boys and Girls. Senior prefects are prefects that have shown great responsibility and who help out a lot with yeargroup or school activities.
For lessons, the tutor groups are split in half by House, with W, H, M and V on one side and menzel G, Gr, He and Hu on the other. This determines the timetable for the tutorgroup, with one half doing lessons together and the other with their half. W, H, M, V are the 'German' Half while G, Gr, He, and Hu are the 'French' half. This means that one side take German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
as a Modern Foreign Language, while the other takes French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
. The main lessons shared by each half are English
English studies
English studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of literatures written in the English language , English linguistics English studies is an academic discipline that includes the study of literatures written in the English language (including literatures from the U.K., U.S.,...
, Maths, PE
Physical education
Physical education or gymnastics is a course taken during primary and secondary education that encourages psychomotor learning in a play or movement exploration setting....
, DT, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
and German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
. The only lesson that isn't affected by this grouping is Science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
. All other lessons are taught in separate tutor groups.
In Year 10 and 11, the House groupings change for all subjects with option groups for GCSE determining the mix of students in a lesson. The option groups then in turn affect the lesson timetable, with the House groupings only affecting registrations and PE groups.
Sixth form
St Michael
St Michael was a brand that was owned and used by Marks & Spencer from 1928 until 2000.-History:The brand was introduced by Simon Marks in 1928, after his father and co-founder of Marks & Spencer, Michael Marks. By 1950, virtually all goods were sold under the St Michael brand...
and St Catherine. Each tutor group is a mix of members of both the upper and lower sixth so as to promote communication and friendship between both yeargroups.
The Head of Sixth Form basically runs what happens within the sixth form, but the sixth formers have their own committee, The Executive, or 'Exec' for short. This committee, in theory, meets with the Head of Sixth Form every week to discuss any problems within the sixth form or any activities coming up or being planned, such as sixth social..
School day
The normal school day at Cardinal Newman School starts at 8:45am. After a registration and prayer the students move onto their first lesson- this lesson is 90 minutes long (9.10 - 10.40). That is then followed by a 20 minute break, another 90 minute lesson (11 - 12.30) and a 45 minute long lesson (12.30 - 13.15), which is usually used for PSHE (Physical Social Health Education). At 13:15 there is a 45 minute lunch break (13.15 - 14.00). Students can buy food at the cafeteria or eat [packed lunch] in separate lunch rooms. Each year group, and the sixth form, has its own separate lunchroom. After lunch the students move onto their last lesson, which lasts from 14:00 until 15:35.Specialist Science Status
Specialist school
The specialist schools programme was a UK government initiative which encouraged secondary schools in England to specialise in certain areas of the curriculum to boost achievement. The Specialist Schools and Academies Trust was responsible for the delivery of the programme...
with Mathematics
Mathematics
Mathematics is the study of quantity, space, structure, and change. Mathematicians seek out patterns and formulate new conjectures. Mathematicians resolve the truth or falsity of conjectures by mathematical proofs, which are arguments sufficient to convince other mathematicians of their validity...
. This award has given the school funding to build and complete a new sixth form and science block extension, install a new computer and server network across the whole school, install brand new equipment including SMART Boards in many classrooms, purchase new equipment in many departments, epecially in maths and science and the renovation of certain areas of the school site including the PE block.
The school is also currently finishing a four year plan, connected with the attainment of specialist science status, to increase the involvement of the local feeder schools and local employers, so as to raise levels of achievement especially in science and maths. Cardinal Newman is also part of the multi-million pound scheme to regenerate schools in Luton and several parts of the school including the 'Main Block' and the 'Science Block' would be scheduled to be rebuilt in the coming years.
OFSTED report
Its last OFSTEDOfsted
The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills is the non-ministerial government department of Her Majesty's Chief Inspector of Schools In England ....
report gave the school an excellent feedback, including talking about the 'good quality of the teaching in lessons' and the 'very good management and leadership in the school'. Main areas for improvement included the ICT
ICT (education)
Information and communication technologies in education deal with the use of information and communication technologies within educational technology.-Purpose:...
Provision and the induction process of new students. These areas and others, are currently being addressed and substantially improved with the help of funding and support from the feeder schools and the board of governors
Board of governors
Board of governors is a term sometimes applied to the board of directors of a public entity or non-profit organization.Many public institutions, such as public universities, are government-owned corporations. The British Broadcasting Corporation was managed by a board of governors, though this role...
.http://www.cardinalnewman.luton.sch.uk/ofsted.html. Cardinal Newman is currently ranked in the top 3 for KS3
Key Stage 3
Key Stage 3 is the legal term for the three years of schooling in maintained schools in England and Wales normally known as Year 7, Year 8 and Year 9, when pupils are aged between 11 and 14...
and GCSE results in Luton, and 1109 out of 3579 in England. http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/shared/bsp/hi/education/03/school_tables/secondary_schools/html/821_4606.stm
Motto
The School motto is Ex Umbris In Vertitatem, which means Out of The Shadows and into The Truth and the School's Mission Statement is "Together towards our Lord, through learning, love and faith with Christ in all we do"Alumni
There have been several famous people that have attended Cardinal Newman and this includes:- Luke Walsh, Student Legend
- Cliff McNishCliff McNishCliff McNish is a fantasy author for young adults. His books are notable for their use of bizarre, intense imagery. He visits many schools as well to talk about how he became a writer.- The Doomspell Trilogy :...
, author. - Kevin BlackwellKevin BlackwellKevin Patrick Blackwell is an English former professional football goalkeeper who since retiring as a player has worked as a coach and a manager. He has an identical twin, Noel.-Early career:...
, Ex Luton Town Football Club Manager. - Kingsley BlackKingsley BlackKingsley Black is an English-born Northern Ireland former professional footballer. He notably played for Luton Town, Nottingham Forest and Grimsby Town...
, ex Luton Town Football Club player. - Gary DohertyGary DohertyGary Michael Thomas Doherty is an Irish footballer who plays for Charlton Athletic. He plays as defender.Doherty played international football for the Republic of Ireland but has not been in the squad under manager Giovanni Trapattoni...
has played for Tottenham HotspurTottenham Hotspur F.C.Tottenham Hotspur Football Club , commonly referred to as Spurs, is an English Premier League football club based in Tottenham, north London. The club's home stadium is White Hart Lane....
and is currently at Charlton Athletic football club. - Kevin FoleyKevin Foley (footballer)Kevin Patrick Foley is an English-born Irish footballer who plays as a defender for Premier League club Wolverhampton Wanderers and the Republic of Ireland national football team. Foley previously spent twelve years at Luton Town...
, currently plays for Wolves Football Club. - Liam GeorgeLiam GeorgeLiam Brendan George is an English-born Irish footballer, who represented Ireland in the Under 18 European Youth Championship, and who is currently playing for Hitchin Town on a part-time basis, having signed for them in December 2008.Liam's family originates from Saint Lucia and Church Street,...
, footballer. - Keith KeaneKeith KeaneKeith Francis Keane is an English-born Irish footballer who plays as either a defender or midfielder for Luton Town. He is a former academy player who graduated from the youth ranks at Luton...
, currently plays for Luton Town Football Club.