I would urge you to read our newsletter the ABI Update (which you access via the Communication tab), and visit our Twitter account @ABIlsley to get a flavour of all the events taking place in our faith-filled and joyful school. 

I thought it fitting to finish my message with an excerpt from the speech Pope Benedict delivered at the ‘Big Assembly’ back in September 2010. Canon Jonathan actually quoted this in his sermon to staff in the beautiful mass we attended on my first day in post on Tuesday 3rd January 2023:

“A good school provides a rounded education for the whole person, and a good Catholic school over and above this should help all its students to become saints. I know that there are many non-Catholics studying in the Catholic schools in Great Britain, and I wish to include all of you in my words today. I pray that you too will feel encouraged to practice virtue and to grow in knowledge and friendship with God alongside your Catholic classmates. You are a reminder to them of the bigger picture that exists outside the school, and indeed it is only right that respect and friendship for members of other religious traditions should be among the virtues learned in a Catholic school. I hope too that you will want to share with everyone you meet, the values and insights you have learned through the Christian education you have received.”

Thank you for reading my message. If you are a current pupil, parent, or member of staff, I hope you feel it reflects the special place that Archbishop Ilsley is. If you are a prospective pupil, sixth former, or member of staff, I would encourage you to get in contact and arrange to visit us soon.

Ciaran Clinton