St Aloysius' College is a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

, boys-only

state school A state school, public school, or government school is a primary school, primary or secondary school that educates all students without charge. They are funded in whole or in part by taxation and operated by the government of the state. State-f ...

in the

London Borough of Islington The London Borough of Islington ( ) is a London borough, borough in North London, England. Forming part of Inner London, Islington has an estimated population of 215,667. It was formed in 1965, under the London Government Act 1963, by the amalg ...

, England. Each year around 180 pupils are admitted to Year 7 (aged 11 or 12) on the basis of examination; the

local education authority Local education authorities (LEAs) were defined in England and Wales as the local councils responsible for education within their jurisdictions. The term was introduced by the Education Act 1902, which transferred education powers from school bo ...

also assigns students without another school to this school. It is the oldest surviving foundation of its kind in the Archdiocese of Westminster.

History

St Aloysius' College was founded in 1879 by the Brothers of Mercy as a Roman Catholic

private Private or privates may refer to: Music * "In Private", by Dusty Springfield from the 1990 album ''Reputation'' * Private (band), a Denmark-based band * "Private" (Ryōko Hirosue song), from the 1999 album ''Private'', written and also recorded ...

boarding and day school and then a

grammar school A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a Latin school, school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented Se ...

. The control of the college was passed to the

De La Salle Brothers The De La Salle Brothers, officially named the Institute of the Brothers of the Christian Schools (; ; ) abbreviated FSC, is a Catholic lay religious congregation of pontifical right for men founded in France by Jean-Baptiste de La Salle ( ...

in 1960. It turned comprehensive in 1971 with the reorganisation of the English education system, and merged with local boys' comprehensive St. William of York in the 1980s. The school went through a turbulent period during the 1990s with declining academic standards and the subsequent loss of its

sixth form In the education systems of Barbados, England, Jamaica, Northern Ireland, Trinidad and Tobago, Wales, and some other Commonwealth countries, sixth form represents the final two years of secondary education, ages 16 to 18. Pupils typically prepa ...

. It reopened the sixth form in September 2010 and admitted a small number of girls. It was awarded the

Sportsmark Sportsmark is Sport England's accreditation scheme for secondary schools. The scheme recognises a school's out of hours sports provision.Artsmark Artsmark is the quality standard for culture and creativity in schools and education settings, awarded by Arts Council England. The Artsmark award provides a clear framework for teachers and education professionals to plan, develop and evaluat ...

awards. It also featured in a Dispatches special on

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television channel owned and operated by Channel Four Television Corporation. It is state-owned enterprise, publicly owned but, unlike the BBC, it receives no public funding and is funded en ...

TV documentary Undercover Teacher. The school is used by the

National Youth Theatre The National Youth Theatre of Great Britain (NYT) is a youth theatre and charity in London, created with the aim of developing young people's artistic skills via theatrical productions and other creative endeavours. Founded in 1956 as the world ...

for many of its auditions and courses.

Academics

Pupils usually take 10 or 11

GCSE The General Certificate of Secondary Education (GCSE) is an academic qualification in a range of subjects taken in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland, having been introduced in September 1986 and its first exams taken in 1988. State schools ...

subjects. The sixth form is part of a collaboration of local schools in the area known as the Islington Sixth Form Consortium. Fourteen AS Level and four A2 subjects and a number of BTEC courses were available in 2012.

Ofsted inspection

The school underwent

Ofsted The Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (Ofsted) is a non-ministerial department of His Majesty's government, reporting to Parliament. Ofsted's role is to make sure that organisations providing education, training ...

inspection in November 2018, receiving a Grade 3 ("Requires Improvement"). Effectiveness of leadership and management and personal development, behaviour and welfare were graded as 'good'. In 2022 they received a 'good'.

Pupil protest

In 2019 year 10 to 13 pupils protested outside the school, leading to the school agreeing to review sixth formers' dress code, and an end to compulsory study time. Some parents supported their children, commenting on "petty behaviour rules" and the school not adhering to its policies.

Notable former pupils

Ronald Shiner Ronald Alfred Shiner (8 June 1903 – 29 June 1966) was a British stand-up comedian and comedy actor whose career encompassed film, West End theatre and music hall. Early life and career When he was seventeen, Shiner joined the Royal North-Wes ...

(1903-1966) - actor * John Cronin (1916-1986) - surgeon and Labour Party politician *

Peter Sellers Peter Sellers (born Richard Henry Sellers; 8 September 1925 – 24 July 1980) was an English actor and comedian. He first came to prominence performing in the BBC Radio comedy series ''The Goon Show''. Sellers featured on a number of hit comi ...

(1925-1980) - actor * John Harvey (b. 1938) - writer *

Michael Gambon Sir Michael John Gambon (; 19 October 1940 – 27 September 2023) was an Irish-English actor. Gambon started his acting career with Laurence Olivier as one of the original members of the Royal National Theatre. Over his six-decade-long career ...

(1940-2023) - actor *

James Herbert James John Herbert, OBE (8 April 1943 – 20 March 2013) was an English horror writer. A full-time writer, he also designed his own book covers and publicity. His books have sold 54 million copies worldwide, and have been translated into 34 la ...

(1943-2013) - writer * Gary Breen (b. 1973) - footballer *

Nonso Anozie Nonso Anozie (; born 17 November 1978) is a British actor. On television, he is known for his roles as Xaro Xhoan Daxos in the HBO series ''Game of Thrones'' (2012), R.M. Renfield on the Sky series ''Dracula'' (2013), Abraham Kenyatta on the C ...

(b. 1978) - actor *

Joe Cole Joseph John Cole (born 8 November 1981) is an English football coach and former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder or winger. He was long touted as a child prodigy and as the hottest prospect in English football, wi ...

(b. 1981) - footballer * Tyrone Edgar (b. 1982) - sprinter * Jabo Ibehre (b. 1983) - footballer,

Oldham Athletic F.C. Oldham Athletic Association Football Club is a professional association football club in Oldham, Greater Manchester, England. As of the 2025–26 season, the team competes in EFL League Two, the fourth level of the English football league syst ...

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Femi Oyeniran Femi Oyeniran is a Nigerian-British actor and director who started his career in '' Kidulthood'', playing the role of "Moony" in 2006. It was followed by the 2008 sequel ''Adulthood''. His first feature film as a director ''It's A Lot'' was re ...

(b. 1986) - actor and director *

Dappy Costadinos Contostavlos (Greek language, Greek: Κωνσταντίνος Κοντόσταυλος; born 11 June 1987), better known by his stage name Dappy, is an English rapper, singer, songwriter and actor. He is the lead singer of the Lond ...

(b. 1987) - rapper and singer *

Daniel Kaluuya Daniel Kaluuya (; born 24 February 1989) is an English actor. His work encompasses both screen and stage, and List of awards and nominations received by Daniel Kaluuya, his accolades include an Academy Awards, Academy Award, two British Academy ...

(b. 1989) - actor * Moses Barnett (b. 1990) - footballer * Big Zuu (b. 1995) - Television personality * Bobson Bawling (b. 1995) - footballer, Crawley Town F.C. * Armstrong Okoflex (b. 2002) - footballer,

Celtic F.C. The Celtic Football Club, commonly known as Celtic (), is a professional Association football, football club in Glasgow, Scotland. The team competes in the Scottish Premiership, the top division of Scottish football league system, Scottish ...

* Samuel Iling-Junior (b. 2003) - Footballer

Aston Villa FC Aston Villa Football Club (commonly referred to as simply Villa) is a professional Association football, football club based in Aston, Birmingham, England. The club, founded in 1874, compete in the Premier League, the top tier of English foot ...

References

External links

*
Redevelopment Plan for St Aloysius' College
part of

Islington Islington ( ) is an inner-city area of north London, England, within the wider London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's #Islington High Street, High Street to Highbury Fields ...

's "Schools for the Future" initiative
St Aloysius RC College Islington
from the

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

English School Tables 2006 {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Aloysius College, London Educational institutions established in 1879 Boys' schools in London Catholic secondary schools in the Archdiocese of Westminster Secondary schools in the London Borough of Islington 1879 establishments in England Voluntary aided schools in London