Cardinal Newman Catholic School

This article is about the secondary school in Bedforshire, England. For other education establishments with similar names, see Cardinal Newman (disambiguation).

Cardinal Newman Catholic School is a Roman Catholic Academy that caters for pupils aged between 11 and 18, located in the Warden Hills area of Bedfordshire, England. Opened in September 1968, the current head is Mark McLaughlin,^[2] with the deputy heads being Miss C Daly and Mr D Martin. There are currently over 1600 students on roll. The school is named after a cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church, John Henry Newman.

Cardinal Newman Catholic School
Address
Warden Hill Road Luton , Bedfordshire , LU2 7AE England
Information
Type	Academy
Motto	"Ex Umbris in Veritatem" (Out of the Shadows, into the Truth)
Religious affiliation(s)	Roman Catholic
Established	September 1968 (1968-09)
Trust	St Alban Catholic Academies[1]
Department for Education URN	142310 Tables
Ofsted	Reports
Headteacher	Mark McLaughlin
Staff	100+ teaching, 30+ support
Gender	Mixed
Age	11 to 18
Enrolment	approx. 1500 as of November 2015[update]
Capacity	1800
Houses	Wiseman, Hinsley, Manning, Vaughan, Acton, Godfrey, Griffin, Heenan and Hume
Colour(s)	Dark blue, black & white
Publication	Newman News
Website	https://www.cardinalnewmanschool.net

As the only Roman Catholic secondary school in the whole of Luton, the school is constantly oversubscribed with over 400 applicants yearly, yet with 270 places to offer. Cardinal Newman was the only secondary school in Luton to have its own sixth form until 2011 when Stockwood Park Academy (then Barnfield South Academy) launched a sixth form. Its sixth form has over 150 places to offer students from both inside and outside the school.

Sixth Form logo

Specialisms and academy status

Specialist Science Symbol

The school has previously acquired Specialist Science Status with Science. This award has given the school funding to build and complete a new sixth form and science block extension, install a new computer and server network across the whole school, install brand new equipment including SMART Boards in many classrooms, purchase new equipment in many departments, especially in maths and science and the renovation of certain areas of the school site including the PE block. Despite the specialist schools programme ending, the school continues to offer science as specialisms.

Previously a voluntary aided school, in September 2015 Cardinal Newman Catholic School converted to academy status.^[3]

Ofsted report

Its last Ofsted report gave the school excellent feedback, including talking about the 'good quality of the teaching in lessons' and the 'very good management and leadership in the school'. Main areas for improvement included the ICT provision and the induction process of new students. These areas and others, are currently being addressed and substantially improved with the help of funding and support from the feeder schools and the board of governors.^[4]

Notable former pupils

• Kingsley Black, professional footballer for Luton Town & Northern Ireland
• Kevin Blackwell, professional footballer and manager
• Lauren Bruton, professional footballer for Arsenal W.F.C. & England Women
• Gary Doherty, professional footballer for Luton Town, Tottenham Hotspur, Norwich City and Republic of Ireland
• Janoi Donacien, professional footballer for Ipswich Town & Saint Lucia
• Kevin Foley, professional footballer for Luton Town, Wolverhampton Wanderers and Republic of Ireland
• Liam George, professional footballer for Luton Town
• Keith Keane, professional footballer for Luton Town
• Cliff McNish, author
• Conor Travers, the youngest Countdown champion winning at the age of 14 years studied for his GCSEs and then moved to do his A Levels at Luton Sixth Form College^[5]