Welcome from the Headteacher

 

Welcome to St Thomas More Catholic College!

 

We are delighted that you would wish to become a member of our Catholic Community. We believe that all children are created in the image of God and that Christ’s teachings inform our approach to education. Love, justice and forgiveness are the qualities that we consider to be the basis of the development of the whole child. Each child is unique and we aim to ensure that every individual achieves their full potential. We are all at different stages on our journey of faith and it is our aim to support your children as they enter a vital stage of their spiritual education. We do this in a committed but equally enjoyable way through a variety of activities ranging from class discussions on Catholicism, residential retreats, fundraising for the less fortunate, debating other religions up to A-level theological discussions. In practice, this means we treat children with respect, expect them to show respect and adhere to the traditional values of a Catholic education. Discipline is an important feature of this and we rightly have a proud reputation in the City for this. It is interesting to note that the Government now agrees with the Catholic Church’s view that every child matters and we actively promote the 5 strands at all levels in our College.

 

We teach our children in an engaging manner which encourages independent learning in a huge variety of ways. In 2005, our GCSE results led to the College being recognised as the 14th most improved school in the whole country. There are thousands of secondary schools nationally and so 14th place is a tremendous achievement. Our results are consistently amongst the best not only across the city, but over a much wider area. Importantly, it is the level of progress that students make during their time at St Thomas More that is particularly impressive. It is not just certain groups of pupils who do so well. Government statistics tell us that all groups of pupil progress effectively during their time in the College. Your child will be a member of a school community that has an excellent track record of academic success.

 

But, learning can take place in the most surprising of ways and our newly introduced Flexible Fridays show the students challenging themselves in a variety of ways.

 

Serving others less fortunate than ourselves has a high profile in this college. We have a sister school in Tanzania and we aim to establish links with the staff and students.

We are proud of what we have achieved over the last 20 years. We have the finest staff, excellent facilities and most important of all – young people who want to learn in a friendly, caring and supportive community.

 

If this appeals to you then be confident that while Catholic children will have a priority, we take in children from all faiths so long as they promise to support the ethos of the college. The oversubscription of the past few years shows that parents like what we offer, the young adults that we turn out and the success in exams that all parents want for their children.

 

Mr N Finnigan BA MA PGCE NPQH

Headteacher