St. John Fisher Catholic High School (Wigan)
Encyclopedia
St John Fisher Catholic High School is a mixed comprehensive secondary school located in Beech Hill, Wigan
, Greater Manchester
.
It is named after the Catholic martyr
John Fisher
.
. In the late 1990s and early 2000s one years' team went unbeaten for 5 years, earning a place in the Guinness Book of Records. The schools sporting alumni include Wigan
rugby league
footballers
Shaun Edwards
and Billy Joe Edwards, the latter of whom was killed in a traffic accident in 2003. Current Wigan Warriors rugby league players Joel Tomkins
, Sam Tomkins
, Paul Prescott
, Chris Ashton
, and Sean O'Loughlin
also attended the school.
Sean Gleeson
who is now plying his trade with Salford City Reds
also attended the school.
A host of other former rugby league stars also attended the school, most notably former Warrington Wolves
captain and Wigan Warriors
coach Mike Gregory
.
with a cast drawn from the higher-school and lower-school. The 2008 production was 'Striking Out' which was the school's version of Billy Elliot
, combining the films script and the musicals songs, it was well received and had two casts, with 2 Billys, Michaels, Dads, Tonys, Grandmas, Debbies and Mrs Wilkinsons. For the 2009 show extracts from "annie" "oliver twist" and "Les Miserables" were combined with talent acts to create a 2 hour show called "musical montage"
Wigan
Wigan is a town in Greater Manchester, England. It stands on the River Douglas, south-west of Bolton, north of Warrington and west-northwest of Manchester. Wigan is the largest settlement in the Metropolitan Borough of Wigan and is its administrative centre. The town of Wigan had a total...
, Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester
Greater Manchester is a metropolitan county in North West England, with a population of 2.6 million. It encompasses one of the largest metropolitan areas in the United Kingdom and comprises ten metropolitan boroughs: Bolton, Bury, Oldham, Rochdale, Stockport, Tameside, Trafford, Wigan, and the...
.
It is named after the Catholic martyr
Martyr
A martyr is somebody who suffers persecution and death for refusing to renounce, or accept, a belief or cause, usually religious.-Meaning:...
John Fisher
John Fisher
Saint John Fisher was an English Roman Catholic scholastic, bishop, cardinal and martyr. He shares his feast day with Saint Thomas More on 22 June in the Roman Catholic calendar of saints and 6 July on the Church of England calendar of saints...
.
General information
Its pupils number around 900, aged 11–16. The schools performs well in league tables compared with other local schools. Staff have a strict and unbreakable uniform policy taking pride in the students positive and coprative reaction to this.Rugby League
The school has a strong sporting tradition, particularly in Rugby LeagueRugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
. In the late 1990s and early 2000s one years' team went unbeaten for 5 years, earning a place in the Guinness Book of Records. The schools sporting alumni include Wigan
Wigan Warriors
Wigan Warriors is an English rugby league club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester. The club's first team squad competes in the engage Super League and the team are the current Challenge Cup holders as of the 27th August 2011....
rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
footballers
Rugby football
Rugby football is a style of football named after Rugby School in the United Kingdom. It is seen most prominently in two current sports, rugby league and rugby union.-History:...
Shaun Edwards
Shaun Edwards
Shaun Edwards OBE is an English rugby union coach and former rugby league player. He is defence coach of Wales, a post he has held since 2008. In November 2011 he left London Wasps after 10 years with the club, latterly as head coach....
and Billy Joe Edwards, the latter of whom was killed in a traffic accident in 2003. Current Wigan Warriors rugby league players Joel Tomkins
Joel Tomkins
Joel Tomkins is an English professional rugby league footballer for the Wigan Warriors in the European Super League. An England international representative second-row forward, he has played his whole career to date at Wigan, winning the 2010 Super League Grand Final and 2011 Challenge Cup with...
, Sam Tomkins
Sam Tomkins
A pre-season unofficial friendly match provided Tomkins his first experience against top-flight opposition as he came off the bench during Lee Briers' testimonial match in a 30–22 loss to Warrington Wolves. Noble followed this up by providing Tomkins, aged 19, with his first team debut on 12 May...
, Paul Prescott
Paul Prescott
Paul Prescott is an English rugby league player. He plays prop for the Wigan Warriors. Paul is also known in celebrity circles for being the son of former UK deputy prime-minister and now lifelong Labour peer, John Prescott...
, Chris Ashton
Chris Ashton
Chris Ashton is an English rugby union player who has represented England in both Rugby League and Rugby Union...
, and Sean O'Loughlin
Sean O'Loughlin
Sean O'Loughlin is an English professional rugby league footballer who captains the Wigan Warriors of Europe's Super League. A Great Britain and England international representative , and /, he has played his entire career to date with Wigan, with whom he won the 2010 Super League XV...
also attended the school.
Sean Gleeson
Sean Gleeson
Sean Gleeson is the name of:*Seán Gleeson, actor who starred in EastEnders and Doctors*Sean Gleeson rugby league player...
who is now plying his trade with Salford City Reds
Salford City Reds
Salford City Reds are an English rugby league club based in Salford, Greater Manchester. Formed in 1873, they currently play in the Super League. They have won six Rugby Football League Championships and one Challenge Cup...
also attended the school.
A host of other former rugby league stars also attended the school, most notably former Warrington Wolves
Warrington Wolves
Warrington Wolves are a professional rugby league football club based in Warrington, England that competes in Super League. They play at the Halliwell Jones Stadium, having moved there from Wilderspool in 2003....
captain and Wigan Warriors
Wigan Warriors
Wigan Warriors is an English rugby league club based in Wigan, Greater Manchester. The club's first team squad competes in the engage Super League and the team are the current Challenge Cup holders as of the 27th August 2011....
coach Mike Gregory
Mike Gregory
Michael Keith "Mike" Gregory , was a rugby league player and later coach; the former head coach of Wigan and player for Warrington and Great Britain.-Playing career:...
.
Shows
During November 2007, the school put on High School MusicalHigh School Musical
High School Musical is a 2006 American television film, first in the High School Musical film franchise. Upon its release on January 20, 2006, it became the most successful film that Disney Channel Original Movie ever produced, with a television sequel High School Musical 2 released in 2007 and...
with a cast drawn from the higher-school and lower-school. The 2008 production was 'Striking Out' which was the school's version of Billy Elliot
Billy Elliot
Billy Elliot is a 2000 British drama film written by Lee Hall and directed by Stephen Daldry. Set in the fictional town of "Everington" in the real County Durham, UK, it stars Jamie Bell as 11-year-old Billy, an aspiring dancer, Gary Lewis as his coal miner father, Jamie Draven as Billy's older...
, combining the films script and the musicals songs, it was well received and had two casts, with 2 Billys, Michaels, Dads, Tonys, Grandmas, Debbies and Mrs Wilkinsons. For the 2009 show extracts from "annie" "oliver twist" and "Les Miserables" were combined with talent acts to create a 2 hour show called "musical montage"
External links
- St John Fisher Catholic High School
- Ofsted profile, including latest inspection