St Joseph's Catholic and Anglican High School, Wrexham


St Joseph's Catholic and Anglican High School is a secondary school in Wrexham, Wales, located on Sontley Road and situated on the edge of the Erddig estate. The school is opposite the Bishop of Wrexham's residence. It is currently the only shared Church school in Wales. The two Bishops of the Catholic Dioceses of Wrexham and the Anglican Church in Wales Diocese of St. Asaph have a shared responsibility for the school.

History

St Joseph's was opened in 1958 as St Joseph's Catholic Secondary Modern School. Headmaster - Mr Martin Cleary. In 1972 St Joseph's became a Comprehensive High School. It joined up with the Anglican church in 2006.
Originally there were three forms, or 'houses': Bishops, Abbots and Gwyns. Eventually these were renamed and expanded and for many years there were four forms: Hannon, Mostyn, Petit and Vaughan. When the school gained joint church school status, the pupils were asked to vote for the new form names, based on contemporary religious icons. The following five names were chosen: Romero, Cassidy, Devereux, Kolbe, King.
In 2006 St Joseph's became a joint Anglican-Catholic school. The school has never been exclusively Catholic and has always admitted non-Catholic students - mainly Anglicans.
The whole school Eucharists alternate between the two traditions.
The current headteacher is Mr C Wilkinson. He was preceded by Mrs Maria B. Rimmer, the school's first female Headteacher.

Academics

The school introduces some new topics that are different from primary school such as French, German, Drama, and various technology subjects.
An official Welsh Assembly government inspection in spring 2008 awarded the school the maximum grading possible: seven grade ones.