Catholic points-based admission schools are certain over-subscribed

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

comprehensive school A comprehensive school typically describes a secondary school for pupils aged approximately 11–18, that does not select its intake on the basis of academic achievement or aptitude, in contrast to a selective school system where admission is res ...

s in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

and the English home counties which have adopted admissions criteria based on adherence to the Catholic faith. In order to attend these schools candidates must come from practising Catholic families, or those which are active in the Catholic Church. In September 1999 the New Labour government, on grounds of egalitarianism and increasing access, removed the right for state schools to interview pupils to assess practice of their faith. However, the London Oratory school continued to interview to assess Catholicity up until 2006, having won a court case to the effect that, while schools had to have regard to the code of admissions, it was not binding.London Oratory will stop Pupil Interviews
/ref> The schools all have certain similarities: they recruit from across London despite being located in expensive areas; are single-sex (at least up until the 6th form); offer a traditional curriculum; have a strong focus on Catholic formation; achieve GCSE and A Level results 30-35 per cent above the national average; are strong on pupil discipline; have supportive parents; and have high

Oxbridge Oxbridge is a portmanteau of Oxford and Cambridge, the two oldest, wealthiest, and most famous universities in the United Kingdom. The term is used to refer to them collectively, in contrast to other British universities, and more broadly to de ...

and

Russell Group The Russell Group is a self-selected association of twenty-four public university, public research university, research universities in the United Kingdom. The group is headquartered in Cambridge and was established in 1994 to represent its memb ...

entry rates. These characteristics are not dissimilar to other voluntary aided schools in London such as the Camden School for Girls, which is a non-faith school.

References

Catholic education Catholic secondary schools in England School types {{Catholic-school-stub