Ursuline High School, Wimbledon
The Ursuline High School, Wimbledon ("the Ursuline") is a Roman Catholic secondary school, for girls aged 11 to 19, based in Crescent Road and The Downs, Wimbledon, London. The school has a joint sixth form with the all-boys brother school of Wimbledon College that is situated on Edge Hill. It is under the Trusteeship of the Catholic Archdiocese of Southwark and is maintained by the London Borough of Merton. The school has a tradition of academic excellence, addressing individual needs and service in the spirit of St Angela. With specialisms in ‘Business and Enterprise’ and ‘Modern Foreign Languages’, the curriculum equips girls with skills for the 21st century and develops them as independent and critical learners and confident communicators. The standards achieved in academic work and all aspects of the life of young people have been outstanding and the school is also committed to continuous self improvement. Being fully comprehensive academically and socially, it enjoys a strong and supportive community life.[1]
The school's motto is "Serviam", which in Latin means "I will serve". I will serve and service of others is at the heart of the school's ethos and chaplaincy work. As a catholic school, it has a rich liturgical life and students have a strong interest and commitment to social justice issues. It has been serving the local community by providing education for Catholic girls for over 100 years.
History
St. Angela de Merici inspired the Ursuline Sisters to provide young women with an opportunity to achieve their full potential. The school was founded from Forest Gate in 1892 when four nuns of the Ursuline order came to establish a tiny school in a private house in Worple Road. In the beginning there were eight pupils, now there are over 1360. The school has gone through three phases evolving from a private school to a grammar school and now is a voluntary-aided comprehensive school. Its specialisms are Business & Enterprise and Languages specialist status and it is a Gifted & Talented Lead School. It has recently been selected as a Regional Winner (London Secondary) in the Church School Awards 2011, as an example of excellent practice in the field of community cohesion and global citizenship.[2] Throughout their lives, students continue to carry forward the legacy of St. Angela de Merici, by serving their society in all paths of life [3]
Mission Statement[4]
The school commits itself to education for tomorrow's world within the dynamic tradition of Catholic belief and practice. As a Christian community, characterised by a spirit of respect, trust and joy, we promote excellence in every aspect of life, thereby fully developing each individual.
The Ursuline aims:
- To build a caring and supportive Christian community where each individual is able to grow in their understanding of the faith and in their commitment to Christ.
- To set standards of excellence in teaching and learning and to provide a broad balanced and relevant curriculum.
- To develop personal qualities of understanding of self and others, self-discipline and motivation, responsible maturity, creative freedom and integrity.
- To foster an attitude of respect for all regardless of age, race, colour, creed or gender.
- To build peace, to promote justice, social concern and, through the celebration of difference, the equality of all peoples.
- To widen horizons, to encourage a sense of commitment and service to the wider world, and to enable each one to go on learning and changing all through life.
By the time they leave the Ursuline students will:
- Be aware of Christ as a centre of their lives.
- Be willing, in the spirit of SERVIAM, to develop their talents and use them for the good of others, especially the most needy.
- Be friendly, happy and confident and be able to work with patience and generosity, assured that with God they can do great things.
- Be focused on Justice and Peace as they keep alive the Gospel values in our world of today.
- Be able able to recognise the uniqueness of each individual by showing respect and love for all.
- Be happy to know St Angela and to have shared her values in the context of their Ursuline School.
Students successfully:
- Raised over £12 000 through their local and international charity activities in one year, including Rose’s Gift, Manna Society, CAFOD, Crisis at Christmas, The Passage, Age Concern, The British Heart Foundation and a link school in Nomvalo South Africa.
- Participated in the pilgrimage to Lourdes.
- Took part in "Project Manvi" by spending a month in the southern India, working with the poor in the local community.
- Harvested a collection of foodstuffs for the Ace of Clubs Homeless drop-in centre in Clapham.
- Participated with the international Ursuline Community for the 475th anniversary celebrations of St Angela Merici. The school also hosted a student exchange visit with the Ursuline Academy in Dallas, Texas and raised money for an Ursuline school in Ethopia.
- Made a business studies trip to the Big Apple; New York city.
- Assumed the roles of Lawyers, Ushers, Court Clerk, Jury and Witnesses as part of a Mock Bar Trial competition at the Snaresbrook Crown Court.
- Participated in a real life microgravity experiment with the Astronautics and Space Systems Group, Faculty of Engineering at Kingston University.
- Received tennis coaching from former British number one, Tim Henman and Dan Bloxham as part of a Tennis Taster Day at the All England Lawn Tennis Club, Wimbledon. The school is involved in preparing ball girls for training to a very high standard for the Wimbledon Championships every year.
- The choir and band gave concerts in Valkenburg,(The Netherlands), Monshau (Germany), Calais (France), the Wimbledon Village Fair, the Sacred Heart Parish Day and the Catholic Schools Music Festival.
- Design and Technology students participated in ‘Project Ventura’ in conjunction with the Design Museum, London.
- Visited the European Parliament in Belgium as part of a politics trip.
- Other opportunities for enrichment include trip to various London Museams and theatres, mathematics masterclasses, Marchant’s Hill Activity Centre, PE trip to Cornwall for surfing, the ‘Gifted & Talented’ residential in the Lake District, cultural and language trips to Normandy, Paris, Cologne and Berlin, to name a few.
- Adult students from the wider community can also make the most of the professional online language courses offered by the school in 25 languages (including French, German, Italian, Mandarin, Russian, Hindi, Turkish, Dutch, Vietnamese, Greek, Arabic, Persian, Hebrew, Swedish, English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) and Latin).
Campus
The school is currently made up of seven buildings:
- The Main Building - RE, French, German, Spanish, Information and communication, Science,
- St. George - Mathematics
- Brescia - English, Design & Technology (Product Design)
- St. Ursula - Geography, History, Sociology, Psychology
- The Merici Sports Centre - PE
- St. Angela's Art Centre - Art, Music, Drama (Located on The Downs)
- Dorothy Kazel block - Business Studies, Health and Social Care, ICT
- vocational - ict
- Ursuline Sixth Form Center
Notable alumnae
- Polly Billington, journalist
See also
External links
References