Nicholas Breakspear School
| Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School | |
|---|---|
| Address | |
 | |
Colney Heath Lane , , AL4 0TT England , United Kingdom | |
| Coordinates | 51°44′51″N 0°17′20″W / 51.74747°N 0.28881°W |
| Information | |
| Type | Academy |
| Motto | Per Tuas Semitas (English: "In thy ways") |
| Religious affiliation(s) | Roman Catholic |
| Established | 1963 |
| Founder | Father John Farnsborough |
| Local authority | Hertfordshire County Council |
| Area trustee | Diocese of Westminster Academy Trust |
| Department for Education URN | 137938 Tables |
| Ofsted | Reports |
| Chair of governors | Mrs Sue McLellen [1] |
| Religious head | Mr Declan Linnane[1] |
| Staff | 124 |
| Gender | Coeducational |
| Age | 11 to 18 |
| Enrolment | 574[1] |
| Houses | Ten Houses |
| Colour(s) | Navy blue and yellow
|
| Slogan | Nurture Believe Succeed |
| Publication | NBS School Magazine |
| Website | Official Website |
Nicholas Breakspear School (NBS) is a secondary school with academy status situated on the rural fringe of St Albans, an old Roman city in Hertfordshire, England.
Nicholas Breakspear School was built in 1963, and founded by Father John Farnborough, whose mission was to provide a Catholic education for young people in the local area.
The land it is built on was covenanted for the purposes of education and as such is protected from any other kind of development. Set among the rolling fields of the Hertfordshire countryside, NBS has a proud heritage of teaching through its setting, encapsulated today in the form of a brand new ‘outdoor classroom’ to enable students to learn at first-hand from the environment around them.
The school buildings are typical examples of 1960’s architecture, and reflect the ethos of simple buildings, constructed to maximise natural light. The views from the upper floors are uninterrupted and beautiful. The school enjoys all the advantages of large playing fields, AstroTurf and spacious playgrounds, as well as basketball and tennis courts.
The school takes its name from the 12th Century priest Nicholas Breakspear, who, as Pope Adrian IV, is the only Englishman ever to have occupied the papal chair.
It was categorised in 2016 as a ‘Good’ school, and is currently on a journey to ‘Outstanding’.
In October 2021, the school's Section 8 Ofsted report stated "Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School continues to be a good school. There is enough evidence of improved performance to suggest that the school could be judged outstanding if we were to carry out a section 5 inspection now. The school’s next inspection will be a section 5 inspection".
Mission Statement
Our Mission is clear 'Empowered by the presence of God and each other, we nurture our unique gifts to build a better world'. This, combined with the warmth, care and dedication of our staff, enables our students to grow and flourish into well-rounded individuals who are ready to fulfil our Mission – to build a better world. We make a commitment to you and your child to deliver our philosophy to Nurture, Believe and Succeed, which is integral to creating confident and compassionate citizens ready to make an impact on our society.
https://nbs.herts.sch.uk/about-nicholas-breakspear-catholic-school/our-mission-statement/
Recent history
To commemorate the First World War centenary, the school displayed crosses with the names of local soldiers and held a special service of remembrance on 9 November 2018.[2]
As part of the 2018 International Men's Day theme of "Positive Male Role Models" Breakspear invited former footballer Jermaine Jonas, Kiss FM DJ Majestic (Kevin Christie), journalist and Home Office press officer Conor Gaffey and kickboxing champion Ciaran Shanahan to speak about mental health.[3]
House system
Breakspear has six houses, each named after a saint whose life is intended to serve as an example to the community. Students are assigned to one of the houses on entrance to the school in Year 7 where they remain until the end of 6th form; whenever possible younger siblings become a member of the same house.
Each member of staff is also attached to a house.
Each house has two designated Year 11 House Captains, and one Sixth Form House Leader, who aides in coordinating house teams, organise activities and events and represent their house at relevant meetings. Houses compete between themselves for the most point accumulated during both terms of the school year.
List of houses
Extracurricular activities
BBC Young Reporter
Breakspear promotes student participation in the BBC Young Reporter program, where pupils write articles on subjects that interest them.[citation needed]
School staff
| Name | Tenure | |
|---|---|---|
| From | To | |
| J C White | pre-2000 | 2005 |
| Phil Jakszta | 2005 | 2013 |
| Declan Linnane | 2014 | present day |
Notable faculty
Distinguished alumni
- Martin Brophy MBE - former chairman of the London Gay Men's Choir.[4]
- Tom Cahill - musician, he played in the band Saving Aimee.[5]
- Matthew Connolly - professional football player, he started his career at Arsenal and most notably played for Queens Park Rangers and Cardiff City.
- Naomi Czuba - starred in an international advertising campaign for Sweaty Betty.[6]
- Ryan Henson - Conservative Party candidate for Bedford at the 2019 United Kingdom general election. He finished runner up to Mohammad Yasin of the Labour Party, who won by just 145 votes.
- Satoshi Ishida - musician, he played in the band Saving Aimee.[5]
- Nick Isiekwe - professional English rugby union player, he has stated that Breakspear aided in his formation.[7]
- Sean Lemon - musician, he played in the band Saving Aimee[5] and is a member of the band Room 94.
- Jessica Martins - Miss Global Madeira 2013-2014.[8]
- Gail Radley - co-founder of Harper & Guy Recruitment Solutions.[9]
References
- ^ a b c School report: Nicholas Breakspear Catholic School (PDF) (Report). Ofsted. 1 September 2016. Retrieved 14 July 2017.
- ^ Suslak, Anne (12 November 2018). "St Albans pupils hold Remembrance service to mark World War I centenary". The Herts Advertiser. Archived from the original on 16 November 2018. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ^ Suslak, Anne (28 November 2018). "St Albans school talks about mental health for International Men's Day". The Herts Advertiser. Archived from the original on 29 November 2018. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ^ Perring, Rebecca (18 June 2013). "St Albans businessman Martin Brophy awarded MBE for worldwide LGBT choir work". St Albans & Harpenden Review. Archived from the original on 6 March 2018. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ^ a b c "Local band supporting McFly".
- ^ Berry, Franki (14 September 2019). "St Albans women are new faces of global Sweaty Betty advertising campaign". The Herts Advertiser. Archived from the original on 22 September 2019. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ^ Edwards, Michael (4 May 2015). "Isiekwe on England, Saracens and preparing for exams". The Herts Advertiser. Archived from the original on 5 April 2019. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ^ Perring, Rebecca (9 September 2013). "St Albans teen, Jessica Martins, vies to win Miss Global International title". St Albans & Harpenden Review. Archived from the original on 24 May 2020. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
- ^ Kelly, Liam (12 May 2019). "Charlotte Harper and Gail Radley, co-founders of H&G; Recruitment: we got behind the wheel in hiring". The Times. Archived from the original on 12 May 2019. Retrieved 24 May 2020.