Our School History
On 8th May 1862, The Ursuline sisters came from Belgium to found a school. They settled in “Old House” in Upton Lane in the village of Upton. By 28th May they had begun a school in Sun Row (now Green Street) for the Catholic children of the area. This was the beginning of what we now call St. Antony’s Catholic Primary School. So the school is over 150 years old!
By January 1889 the boys had moved from the convent to the care of the Franciscans with Mr Cockburn as the Headteacher. The log book for January 18th 1889 says “Some of the boys in the upper standards are a little troublesome, but on the whole the boys are very docile and obedient.” The school has evolved over those years.
The infants and girls stayed with the Ursuline’s until 1903; in January 1904 they moved into the newly built St. Antony’s School. By August 1943 the boys and girls had been mixed. Following the 1944 Education Act the school ceased to cater for children older than eleven.
In the mid 1960s the school moved to its present site in Upton Avenue. We have a number of our present staff who were educated in the school; they all have their own stories to tell about the past.
After many years of badgering the Education Department St. Antony’s Nursery unit was opened in 1992 across the road from the school. It is a beautiful building and was very much a show nursery when it opened.
The school came full circle in September 1999 when the Infant and Junior schools were amalgamated to form the present St. Antony’s Catholic Primary school.
In August 2004 a major building project was started to incorporate the Nursery within the main building. This project also included building four new classrooms, a bigger Library and improved facilities for staff. The former Nursery building re-opened as a Satellite Children’s Centre known as Kids’ World.
The school has continued to change and grow over the last years but there has always been a strong desire to give the children the very best education.
What do people say?
Testimonials
We must say you are an amazing school! We can’t thank you enough for your contribution towards building up our children’s confidence and also bringing joy into their life everyday while attending school. Our children have both done so well and have made so much progress. We have enjoyed working with the EYFS Lead and her team from the pre-school to Reception. In the mornings our children just run into school, always looking forward to what they will do and what they will learn and experience. They come home every day always very excited to share what they are learning such as songs, stories, phonics and art. We could not be happier. Thank you for making them feel so happy, safe and at home.
Mr & Mrs Dumitru
The moment that my son entered year 6 at St Antony’s, I noticed a remarkable transformation in his attitude and approach to learning; but most importantly, to his self-image and self-belief. He had always lacked confidence, largely due to the fact that he stuttered. Thankfully, his teacher-the Deputy Head and head of year 6, took the time to develop his confidence and self-esteem through engaging him in the Drama Club which she leads. She skillfully and intentionally used the Performing Arts to pull him out of his shell. He was included in every production and performance from Christmas to Easter, to the big end of year musical and he simply flourished- socially, emotionally and especially academically! By the end of year 6, he achieved GDS (well above national) in all areas in the SATS and is now such a confident speaker. He has such a bright future ahead of him.
Mrs RDA
I have three children in attendance at St Antony’s Catholic Primary, covering the full spectrum of the phases: EYFS, KS1 and KS2 and my experience has been that the staff at all levels of the school genuinely care about the children and want to see them thrive and achieve to their fullest individual potential and beyond. The Head and SLT are so committed to the children’s growth and development that they invest a lot of their time running before, during and after school programs and interventions along with their staff- giving the children the very best opportunities to be spiritually, socially, academically and morally, optimally rounded. My children love their school and look forward to going everyday –even for programs on the week-ends and in the holidays-which is of such great help to working parents. The children are really at the heart of the school; which truly has Christ at its center.
A Proud St Antony’s Dad
My son is on the autistic spectrum and is classified as having ‘High Needs’, so it is quite a challenge for him to engage socially and emotionally with anyone… even family. The love, care, patience and support that my child has received at St Antony’s is beyond belief. He has had bespoke programs and interventions put in place that have helped him to be able to read and answer basic questions, write, learn his numbers and do basic maths -which will help him to be more independent in the future. The greatest blessing for me however, are the ‘life skills’ that my son has been taught such as riding a bike, basic cooking and self-care, safe travel, swimming and actually engaging with others in after school clubs such as Drama. When I consider that this is not a special school, which does not get the funding to fully support children like my son, I cannot help but feel really blessed.
Mrs MD