St Monica's High School
Encyclopedia
St Monica's RC High School Specialist Language College is located on Bury Old Road in Prestwich
, Greater Manchester
opposite Heaton Park
. The Headteacher of St Monica's is Frank McCarron.
The school serves pupils mainly from the areas of Prestwich
, Whitefield
, Kersal
and Radcliffe
. As a Roman Catholic establishment, the school's student population is primarily Catholic. St Monica's regularly has the highest GCSE results of all the state-funded, comprehensive schools in the Bury GCSE league table.
As St Monica's does not have a Sixth Form (years 12 and 13), most pupils who continue their education go to Bury College
and Holy Cross College
in Bury, and Loreto College
in Hulme
, Manchester. Some pupils from St Monica's regularly attend a Mathematics course at the Jewish, local authority-funded King David School
, Crumpsall
. As well as this course a select few pupils have been put forward for, and are now actually taking part in, an AS course in French. St Monica's also do a wide range of charity work for Francis House.
The school is hoping to have £6 million to spend on a sixth form college which will specialize in both languages and another speciality which is not yet decided. A new English block next to the P.E. department and near the cabins has now been finished.
During the Pope's visit to England in 1982 the school was used as the base for local authorities and members of the Pope's entourage. The Pope made his appearance in nearby Heaton Park
so the school was the idea place for the appearance to be run from. The Pope even had lunch in the school dining room and then visited nearby Nazareth House which is a care home for retired priests.
St Monica's gained Language College status in 2003. St Monica's now has regular trips and exchange programmes with schools in France, Spain and China. The school also has links with schools in Germany. This school is also now part of the COMENIUS project which works with many different schools around Europe.
In 2008, the school banned its female pupils from being given the HPV vaccine
for cervical cancer
on school grounds, as school governors believed that the school was the wrong place for the treatment to be administered and feared side effects. A spokesman for the Diocese of Salford
said "the diocese and Catholic schools board do not have a moral objection, but it is up to individual schools to decide whether to allow the vaccinations to be carried out in school".
Prestwich
Prestwich is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies close to the River Irwell, north of Manchester city centre, north of Salford and south of Bury....
, 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...
opposite Heaton Park
Heaton Park
Heaton Park, covering an area variously reported as , 247 hectares, , over and is the biggest park in Greater Manchester, England and one of the biggest municipal parks in Europe. The park comprises the grounds of a Grade I listed, neoclassical 18th century country house, Heaton Hall...
. The Headteacher of St Monica's is Frank McCarron.
The school serves pupils mainly from the areas of Prestwich
Prestwich
Prestwich is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies close to the River Irwell, north of Manchester city centre, north of Salford and south of Bury....
, Whitefield
Whitefield, Greater Manchester
Whitefield is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on undulating ground in the Irwell Valley, along the south bank of the River Irwell, south-southeast of Bury, and to the north-northwest of the city of Manchester...
, Kersal
Kersal
Kersal is an inner city area of Salford, in Greater Manchester, England. The centre of Kersal is northwest of Manchester city centre, and north-northwest of Salford's conventional centre at Greengate....
and Radcliffe
Radcliffe, Greater Manchester
Radcliffe is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Bury, in Greater Manchester, England. It lies on undulating ground in the Irwell Valley, along the course of the River Irwell, south-west of Bury and north-northwest of Manchester. Radcliffe is contiguous with the town of Whitefield to the...
. As a Roman Catholic establishment, the school's student population is primarily Catholic. St Monica's regularly has the highest GCSE results of all the state-funded, comprehensive schools in the Bury GCSE league table.
As St Monica's does not have a Sixth Form (years 12 and 13), most pupils who continue their education go to Bury College
Bury College
Bury College is an institute of higher learning for the borough of Bury, England.-Age range:Bury College is a sixth form college catering for school leavers pursuing A Levels, vocational qualifications or apprenticeships. The college has approximately 8,000 adult learners and focuses on...
and Holy Cross College
Holy Cross College (UK)
Holy Cross College is a Catholic Sixth Form College on Manchester Road in Bury, England, UK-Admissions:It has around 2200 pupils. It offers education for pupils ages 16–19 including A Levels and a limited selection of Undergraduate degrees-History:...
in Bury, and Loreto College
Loreto College
Loreto College or Loreto School is the name of several Roman Catholic schools throughout the world associated with the Sisters of Loreto.-Australia:*Loreto College Coorparoo, Queensland*Loreto College Ballarat, Victoria...
in Hulme
Hulme
Hulme is an inner city area and electoral ward of Manchester, England. Located immediately south of Manchester city centre, it is an area with significant industrial heritage....
, Manchester. Some pupils from St Monica's regularly attend a Mathematics course at the Jewish, local authority-funded King David School
King David School, Manchester
The King David School located in Manchester, United Kingdom is a mixed, voluntary aided Jewish Orthodox school with a great demand for places. The school has been awarded Specialist Maths and Computing College status. In 2007, over 850 pupils attended the school...
, Crumpsall
Crumpsall
Crumpsall is a suburban area and electoral ward of the city of Manchester, in Greater Manchester, England. It is about north of Manchester city centre...
. As well as this course a select few pupils have been put forward for, and are now actually taking part in, an AS course in French. St Monica's also do a wide range of charity work for Francis House.
The school is hoping to have £6 million to spend on a sixth form college which will specialize in both languages and another speciality which is not yet decided. A new English block next to the P.E. department and near the cabins has now been finished.
History
St Monica's was created when two schools, St Joseph's and St Peter's, amalgamated in 1987 and settled on the former St Peter's site.During the Pope's visit to England in 1982 the school was used as the base for local authorities and members of the Pope's entourage. The Pope made his appearance in nearby Heaton Park
Heaton Park
Heaton Park, covering an area variously reported as , 247 hectares, , over and is the biggest park in Greater Manchester, England and one of the biggest municipal parks in Europe. The park comprises the grounds of a Grade I listed, neoclassical 18th century country house, Heaton Hall...
so the school was the idea place for the appearance to be run from. The Pope even had lunch in the school dining room and then visited nearby Nazareth House which is a care home for retired priests.
St Monica's gained Language College status in 2003. St Monica's now has regular trips and exchange programmes with schools in France, Spain and China. The school also has links with schools in Germany. This school is also now part of the COMENIUS project which works with many different schools around Europe.
In 2008, the school banned its female pupils from being given the HPV vaccine
HPV vaccine
The human papilloma virus vaccine prevents infection with certain species of human papillomavirus associated with the development of cervical cancer, genital warts, and some less common cancers...
for cervical cancer
Cervical cancer
Cervical cancer is malignant neoplasm of the cervix uteri or cervical area. One of the most common symptoms is abnormal vaginal bleeding, but in some cases there may be no obvious symptoms until the cancer is in its advanced stages...
on school grounds, as school governors believed that the school was the wrong place for the treatment to be administered and feared side effects. A spokesman for the Diocese of Salford
Diocese of Salford
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Salford is a Latin Rite Roman Catholic diocese centred around Salford Cathedral in the City of Salford in Greater Manchester, England....
said "the diocese and Catholic schools board do not have a moral objection, but it is up to individual schools to decide whether to allow the vaccinations to be carried out in school".