St Francis Xavier's College, Liverpool


St Francis Xavier's College is a Roman Catholic secondary school and sixth form with academy status located in Woolton, Liverpool, England. Year 7 to Year 11 are male only, whereas the Sixth Form are coeducational.
The College is under the trusteeship of the Brothers of Christian Instruction. Their mission is that of their founder, Jean Marie de la Mennais, ‘To make Jesus better known and loved’.
The school is a specialist school for Mathematics and Computing, and was the first school in Liverpool to gain specialist school status in that category.

Origins and history

The college was founded in 1842 in association with Stonyhurst College, Lancashire by the Society of Jesus which is a Roman Catholic religious order.

1842–1843: ''Soho Street''

The college had a rector from 1842 to 1844. It had two pupils.

1843–1845: ''St. Anne Street''

A year later, it had a dozen pupils. Father Francis Lythgoe moved the college to St. Anne Street where it stayed until 1845.

1846–1877: ''Salisbury Street''

In 1844 Father Johnson took over from Father Francis Lythgoe and moved his 24 pupils to the newly opened Presbytery on Salisbury Street. Father Collyns took over the college in 1853.
With more than 50 pupils the rector Father Collyns decided that a new premises was needed. By 1856 the college had its own building built alongside the Presbytery and in 1877 a new college was built on 6 Salisbury Street.

''Second college building''

The newest Salisbury Street building was designed by Henry Clutton, a Catholic architect. He used the designs of Father Vaughan as the bases of his designs. The new college was completed in the summer of 1877 and cost £30,000.

Move to Woolton

In 1961 the college was transferred as a grammar school to its present twenty-six acre site at High Lee, Woolton.
On the sports field, 1982 saw a fine college U15 football team reach the final of the Martindale Cup, outclassing a spirited West Derby Comprehensive side 5-0. That triumph saw the team progress to the Merseyside Shield final, where a strong Salesian team from Bootle - including future Liverpool FC professional Mark Seagraves - were the opponents.
A late goal from the indomitable Danny Wightman, a combative midfield player, saw SFX triumph 1-0 to seal a memorable season for the team and their manager Mr Knowles, who had inherited the squad from Messrs Ridge and Brady, an experienced pairing who had laid the foundations for success.
From 1984-1990 the Lower School site for Years 7, 8 and 9 was located on Queens Drive in Wavertree L15. Later, the Lower School was re-sited with the Upper School at High Lee. In 1990, the college opted out of local authority control, becoming a grant-maintained school. The college was granted Technology College status from April 1996. In September 1999 it became a Foundation School. In 1992, the college became co-educational in the sixth form and in September 2000 the De La Mennais Sixth Form Centre was opened.

School choir

The choir was formed in 1994 and has performed in front of Pope John Paul II. They have toured Europe and the United States, and gained a place in the Guinness Book of Records for singing at every cathedral in England and Wales.
The school sang on the reworked version of The Farm's 1990 hit "Alltogethernow", remixed by BBC Radio 1's DJ Spoony. The single, which reached number 10 in the UK Singles Chart, was the official song for the England football team at the UEFA Euro 2004 competition. It was performed by the choir on Top of the Pops in 2004.

Head Teachers

Notable alumni