Saint Cecilia’s is a vibrant Church of England secondary school with a distinctive Christian ethos for pupils aged 11-18 years. The school first opened in September 2003 on the site of Wandsworth Boys School. It currently has close to 1,000 pupils on roll, including approximately 200 students in its thriving Sixth Form.
“Staff provide a kind and welcoming environment. They develop positive relationships with their pupils. Classrooms are calm. Pupils work hard; they are enthusiastic learners and take responsibility for their learning. Staff have high expectations for pupils’ conduct. Pupils respond to these expectations and behave well.”
As one of the top non-selective state funded schools in Wandsworth, Saint Cecilia’s is renowned for its specialist teaching in Maths and Music. Pupils and sixth formers consistently perform well above average in GCSE and A level examinations. Every year, a high percentage of students are offered places at prestigious Russell Group universities, including Oxford and Cambridge.
Our rugby, netball, hockey, athletics and football teams successfully take part in weekly local and regional competitions. Saint Cecilia’s also has links with the Wimbledon Tennis Championships and each year, a number of pupils are selected as ball boys or girls during the summer tournament. Pupils are offered a wide range of after school clubs such as netball, rugby, football (girls and boys), science, Christian clubs and various music clubs. Pupils in Year 10 and above are also encouraged to take the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award.
“Major trips in the UK and beyond are life changing for many students. The spiritual, moral, social and cultural development of students is impressive and compelling. ”
We offer language exchange programmes to France and Spain, school trips in UK and abroad, including ski trips to Austria, Music tours to Belgium and Italy, visits to Barcelona, Paris, USA, Iceland, Geography field trips and many more. The school has also many links with top universities to provide sixth formers with first-hand experience of higher education.
Saint Cecilia’s has a strong pastoral system – we seek to provide for the personal welfare of each individual child so that there are as few barriers to learning as possible. We want pupils to leave us having achieved their full potential, able to think and make decisions for themselves. Mentors play a crucial role in the social and academic development of each child. They meet regularly, enjoy social trips and activities outside the school day, participate in inter-mentor group competitions throughout the year and play a central role in the monitoring of pupils’ academic progress and achievement through regular analysis of their attainment grades. Mentor meetings also include a time of Christian reflection and meditation. Our Bethany Centre accommodates all aspects of support and inclusion, ensuring we meet the needs of all pupils, including those with Special Education Needs, those who speak English and an additional language and those with personal struggles such as bereavement.
The House system provides a sense of competition, embodies our values, ethos and is an integral part of our school community. Houses are named after famous musicians and mathematicians: Schubert, Archimedes, Ives, Newton, Turing and Carter (S, A, I, N, T, C). Each House accumulates points - the winner is announced at the end of the year and receives the House Cup.
