A sincere welcome to Bishop Challoner Catholic College, one of the highest performing comprehensive schools in the country.

In placing Christ at the centre, our school ensures that our Gospel Values are implicit in daily school life and in the way in which we reach out to serve the wider community. It is intrinsic within our mission to present to all pupils, both Catholic and non-Catholic, the Church’s vision of life through both words and, crucially, actions.

We believe it is vital that our young people are fully equipped to face the demands of a constantly evolving and often uncertain world. Bishop Challoner Catholic College works tirelessly for the pupils it serves, ensuring all leave the school with the highest of academic outcomes, spiritually and culturally developed and equipped with the necessary moral compass, so they are fully prepared to be strong and active members of our society for themselves, their families and the wider community.

 

 

The excellent relationships of mutual respect between pupils and staff that are fostered across the school means the Bishop Challoner community is one that is empowered to serve. Our Religious Education, Spiritual Life, Citizenship and PSHE programmes both taught and lived in our community are essential to achieving this mission. The vibrant student leadership programmes championed by the school, the countless community projects, the work within parishes and with our feeder primary schools ensures all pupils have the opportunities to develop their social conscience. We have a proud tradition of charitable giving to support those of most need within society.

Academic standards and supporting our young people to achieve their full potential is fundamental to Bishop Challoner Catholic College. Our English Department is one of the highest achieving in the country. Our humanities subjects bring a richness to our curriculum that supports our pupils in understanding the world around them in a wide range of critical and cultural contexts. The Arts and Performing Arts Departments are at the forefront of creative initiatives: there is a hardworking and inspirational learning culture in our school. For the staff we appoint- teaching is a passion and a vocation. For our young people, learning is a fulfilling, engaging and aspirational experience, reflected by the fact that we have a large, vibrant and dynamic Sixth Form.

Alongside providing an outstanding Catholic education, Bishop Challoner Catholic College is at the cutting edge of national educational developments. As one of the first 100 Teaching Schools we are a nationally recognised leader in the fields of Initial Teacher Education, research and development and also in supporting school improvement. Our exciting and dynamic professional development programmes provide support for thousands of colleagues both within and beyond our Teaching School Alliance. Through our role as the lead school for the Central Maths Hub and the Central Midland Science Learning Partnership we work with hundreds of schools across the Midlands to support these STEM subjects. We are at the heart of the development and delivery of programmes to support non-specialist teachers in physics, maths and MFL and we work in partnership with the Royal Society to develop STEM projects and resources that benefit pupils across multiple schools, including our own.

We are immensely proud of our incredible sports provision. As well as running sports clubs every day from 7:45am and every evening after school, Bishop Challoner co-ordinates sports programmes across over 30 primary schools. Further to this our rich and dynamic extra-curricular and educational visit programmes provide opportunities for all pupils to enhance their learning beyond the classroom and take great joy in the wonderful experiences these provide.

As Pope Francis reminds us,

“Teachers must aim to build an educational relationship with each student, who must feel welcomed and loved for what he or she is, with all of their limitations and potential.”

 

Bishop Challoner Catholic College is focussed on the needs of the individual - the child and their gift of life - to be cherished, nurtured and valued.

We are a warm and welcoming school that is immensely privileged to serve our community of faith.

 

Dr James Coughlan

Principal