Saint Cecilia's Church of England School (commonly referred to as 'Saint Cecilia's') is a Church of England secondary school in
Southfields
Southfields is a district of inner London located within the London Borough of Wandsworth, England, 5.6 miles (9 km) south-west of Charing Cross. Southfields is mainly residential, historically a part of Wandsworth itself, and is divided b ...
, south-west London. It opened in 2003 as Saint Cecilia's, Wandsworth Church of England School, and was renamed on 1 March 2015. Music and Mathematics are the school's specialisms.
History
It opened as a
voluntary aided school
A voluntary aided school (VA school) is a state-funded school in England and Wales in which a foundation or trust (usually a religious organisation), contributes to building costs and has a substantial influence in the running of the school. In mo ...
in September 2003 with one year group of 150 pupils. It has been growing incrementally year by year until it reached 750 pupils across Years 7 to 11 in the 2007/2008 academic year. It opened its sixth form in 2008. There are now approximately 900 pupils and students at the school including Sixth Formers. The School has also previously won the 2010 Schools Question Time Challenge.
In March 2015 the school converted to
academy status.
In 2019, the school launched the Saint Cecilia's Rugby Academy as a partnership with Premier Rugby Club, London Irish. Each year, 26 boys from the Sixth Form will train with the professionals whilst studying for A Levels and BTECs at the school.
Former school on the site
Saint Cecilia's occupies a part of the site of the former
Wandsworth School
Wandsworth School was a local authority maintained boys' secondary school in Southfields, London. Established in 1895, it became a selective grammar school, then an all-ability comprehensive school, before merging in 1986 and finally closing ...
, a boys' secondary school that merged to become John Archer School in 1986, before finally closing in 1991. Some of the former school's land was sold off for housing, with the original 1927 building converted into flats. Proceeds from the sale of the land helped to finance the £12.4 million cost of building Saint Cecilia's on the southern part of the site.
Admissions
Saint Cecilia’s Church of England School now admits 180 pupils into Year 7 each year. The school participates in the coordinated admission scheme of Wandsworth Council. Saint Cecilia's also adheres to the common timetable for admissions including the arrangements for dealing with applications received after the closing date as set out in Wandsworth Council's scheme.
School life
Academic life
Saint Cecilia's Church of England school caters for pupils of all genders aged 11 to 18.
House System
In July 2009 it was announced the school would begin a house system. In September 2009 five houses were introduced. They were (with house colours later voted for by the pupils of each house):
*
Schubert
Franz Peter Schubert (; 31 January 179719 November 1828) was an Austrian composer of the late Classical and early Romantic eras. Despite his short lifetime, Schubert left behind a vast ''oeuvre'', including more than 600 secular vocal wor ...
(Canary Yellow)
*
Archimedes
Archimedes of Syracuse (;; ) was a Greek mathematician, physicist, engineer, astronomer, and inventor from the ancient city of Syracuse in Sicily. Although few details of his life are known, he is regarded as one of the leading scientists ...
(Royal Purple)
*
Ives
Ives is both a surname and a given name. Notable people with the name include:
Surname:
* Alice Emma Ives (1876–1930), American dramatist, journalist
* Burl Ives (1909–1995), American singer, author and actor
* Charles Ives (1874–1954), Ame ...
(Crimson Red)
*
Newton
Newton most commonly refers to:
* Isaac Newton (1642–1726/1727), English scientist
* Newton (unit), SI unit of force named after Isaac Newton
Newton may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Newton'' (film), a 2017 Indian film
* Newton ( ...
(Prussian Blue)
*
Turing
Alan Mathison Turing (; 23 June 1912 – 7 June 1954) was an English mathematician, computer scientist, logician, cryptanalysis, cryptanalyst, philosopher, and mathematical and theoretical biology, theoretical biologist. Turing was high ...
(Lime Green)
In 2021, a sixth house, Carter, was launched named after famed jazz musician,
Betty Carter
Betty Carter (born Lillie Mae Jones; May 16, 1929 – September 26, 1998) was an American jazz singer known for her improvisational technique, scatting and other complex musical abilities that demonstrated her vocal talent and imaginative inter ...
. Its house colour is bright orange. The house names spell S-A-I-N-T-C.
Sixth Form
In September 2008 the school expansion led to the opening of the school's sixth form. The Sixth Form caters for around 200 pupils across both the Lower and Upper Sixth.
Academic performance
Saint Cecilia's is a high achieving school and every year, GCSE and A Level results are well above average, among the best in Wandsworth LEA.
Sport
The school has rugby, netball, athletics and football teams that take part in weekly local and regional competitions. Every year, pupils are given the option to take part in the Wimbledon Championships Ball Boys and Girls.
References
Sources
Rough-sleeping schoolchildren raise more than £3,000 for the homelessSchools win Question Time Challenge2020 - The Diocese of SouthwarkStudents celebrate A-level results
External links
Former school
{{authority control
Secondary schools in the London Borough of Wandsworth
Church of England secondary schools in the Diocese of Southwark
Educational institutions established in 2003
2003 establishments in England
Academies in the London Borough of Wandsworth