College History

Welcome to our website and thank you for taking the time to explore what we offer at St Augustine's and who we are.

The College opened in 1967 and is named after St. Augustine of Canterbury who was sent by Pope Gregory to England in 597AD to lead the Gregorian Mission to the Anglo-Saxons. Augustine arrived in Kent, where he converted King Æthelberht, and later became the first Archbishop of Canterbury, laying the foundations of the English Church. Our foundation stone was laid on 18^th September 1965 by Bishop Rudderham, with the college opening to students on January 5^th 1967.

Timeline

2017

50th Anniversary of the College

1967

St Augustine's Catholic College opened to 140 pupils.

4th January 1967 A Mass was held on the evening of the College's opening.

5th January 1967 The first teaching day of St Augustine's Secondary Modern begins with 140 students and 9 teachers. It has capacity for 300 pupils and a 2-form entry with a leaving age of 15 years.

1965

The building of the school begins and the foundation stone is laid by His Lordship Bishop Rudderham.

1925

Canon Hudson - Visionary Founder

Fr Hudson came to Trowbridge in 1925 from the Holy Cross parish, Bristol at the age of 29. He was described as ambitious, energetic and visionary. He was appointed canon in 1942. In 1955 he was involved in the purchase of Bradford on Avon’s old town hall, to provide the Church of St. Thomas Moore and about this time he saw the need for a secondary school in the area. The money to build St. Augustine’s was raised with the help of the parishes in the surrounding towns. St. Augustine’s was opened in 1967

At his memorial service in 1974 it was said of him– “his knowledge of educational administration and his limitless energy served the cause of Catholic education in this area for many years, and the schools in Trowbridge stand as a memorial to this”.

Head Teachers - Past and Present

There have only been six Head Teachers of the college since its inception and they have made a huge difference over the years. With their vision and leadership, the College has gone from strength to strength, both in numbers and academically. In recent years, the college has been placed in the top ten percent* of non-selective schools in England and it is the top** non-selective school in Wiltshire.

Tom Johnson 01/01/67 - 31/08/87

Bob Cook 01/09/87 - 31/08/00

Brendan Wall 01/09/00 - 31/08/10

Joe Alsop 01/09/10 - 31/08/18

David Forster 01/09/18 - 22/06/22

Aidan Dowle 23/06/22 - to present

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