Our History

Holy Cross has its roots in 1878, the year in which some of the Daughters of the Cross came to Bury and founded Holy Cross School following the expulsion of religious orders from Germany in the Kulturkamp.

In 1905 this grew into a large girls’ grammar school, Bury Convent Grammar School. Finally, in 1979, Bury Convent ceased to be a girls’ only grammar school and became Holy Cross Sixth Form College. A mixed sixth form college initially with 197 students (137 girls and 60 boys). 

The Daughters of the Cross (Filiae Crucis – FC) are an international Congregation (religious order) who have established hospitals, hospices, schools and colleges around the world, as well as religious houses or convents. They gave us our distinctive ethos and values, which derive from their special vocation or ‘charism’: 

The Daughters of the Cross seek:

• to glorify and honour Christ by loving and serving him above all in his weakest and most suffering members (Daughters of the Cross Constitutions, 1) 
• never to separate the Love of God from the Love of People (Daughters of the Cross Constitutions, 8) 
• to live life to the full (John 10:10) 
• always to help those who find education difficult 

and to be 

• a ‘compassionate heartbeat in the world’, celebrating and living out the central Gospel values of Faith, Hope and Love, as well as the distinctive values of our charism, which include Compassion, Vision, Daring, Service, Humility and Joy

Most of our college buildings are named after influential Sisters.

‘The torch is in your hands now…’

In 2014 the trusteeship of Holy Cross was handed over from the Daughters of the Cross to Salford Diocese but we keep the legacy of our founders very firmly embedded into the daily life of the College.  The values of the Daughters, based on their distinctive charism, form the basis of our college prayer and our values are visible around the college campus.  Each year we celebrate a certain value to help students and staff understand the meaning of that value and also to celebrate ways in which we might live this value as a community.  For example, 2022-23 was the Year of Joy and teachers found many creative ways to celebrate the joy of learning, especially after the difficult years of restrictions in the classroom during the pandemic.  We celebrate an annual founders day, Marie Thérèse Day, where students and staff receive a free cookie and learn more about the Daughters of the Cross.  We celebrate students’ achievements when they leave Holy Cross with our Special Awards, many of which are named after the Sisters who taught at the College. 

The Sister Mary Damian Prize for Faith

For commitment to worship, prayer and liturgy and demonstrating values of Joy, Service, Daring, Vision, Compassion, Faith and Humility. 

The Sister Veronica Hagen Prize for Vision

For exemplifying great vision during their time at Holy Cross and demonstrating values of Joy, Service, Daring, Compassion, Faith and Humility.

The Sister Maureen O’Brien Prize for Service

For serving others with humility in our college community and by demonstrating values of Joy, Daring, Vision, Compassion, Faith and Humility.

The Sister Patricia Ainsworth Prize for Humility

For demonstrating humility and prioritising the welfare and pastoral needs of others in the college community, demonstrating values of Joy, Service, Daring, Vision, Compassion and Faith.

The Sister Margaret McMullan Prize for Compassion

For demonstrating compassion to others and helping to make our college a caring community, demonstrating values of Joy, Service, Daring, Vision, Faith and Humility.

The Sister Maureen Haverty Prize for Joy

For being a beacon of joy and helping to make our college a joyful community, demonstrating values of Service, Daring, Vision, Compassion, Faith and Humility.

The Sister Wilfrid Dean Prize for Daring

For being daring on their Holy Cross journey and helping other people feel inspired to be daring, demonstrating values of Joy, Service, Vision, Compassion, Faith and Humility.