Welcome to
Our School

The Catholic High School, Chester was established in the early 1970s based on its two predecessor schools, The Ursuline Convent, based near the Roman amphitheatre in the middle of the city, and St Bede's Catholic School in Handbridge.
When the school was opened it took over the buildings of the old Overleigh Boys School, while Overleigh St Mary's Church of England Primary School was opened on the old St Bede's site. An external frieze of St Bede can be seen to this day at the front of the primary school. The Catholic High School opened with Michael Balfe as its first headteacher, and he was succeeded by Christine McCann, Vicky Ratchford and John Murray. The current headteacher, Cathryn McKeagney, was appointed in 2019.
The school was founded by and is part of the Catholic church, and the relationship with the Diocese of Shrewsbury and our partner parishes is crucial to us. As well as offering curriculum based Religious Education, students also have access to a series of RE Days, voluntary retreats and Diocesan youth activities. Older students take part in the annual Diocesan pilgrimage to Lourdes and the annual high school Mass with Bishop Mark Davies.
Read moreOur
Vision

Our Vision for all Catholic High School pupils is that they have a place where they belong, become confident, generous young adults and are supported to be the best they can be.
We are proud of our school values and are committed to delivering them consistently. The ethos of our school derives from the joint commitment of the governors, school staff, our students and their parents that:
At The Catholic High School we are ‘Faithful to Christ’ when we treat each other with respect; we work hard at all times, and we take pride in our school community.
Our positive overall ethos provides all members of the school community with a safe and respected school, and is paramount in obtaining a successful learning environment. We aim to inspire improvement and achievement within others whilst setting very high standards - for our students and ourselves.
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Testimonials

School
Performance

Overall achievement in English and Mathematics at GCSE is consistently strong and above national averages thanks to incisive and exemplary leadership in these areas. The most-able pupils benefit from the culture of high expectations and improved teaching; they make excellent progress. (Ofsted 2016)
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