ST Joseph’s Roman Catholic Primary School in Devizes celebrates its 150th anniversary this year, and it continues to attract pupils of all faiths from across the Devizes area.

Bishop Declan Lang took a Mass in the neighbouring Church of Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception on February 27 to give thanks for the continuing success of the school, which owes its existence to the hard work and determination of the nuns who established the community 150 years ago.

In 1864 the Sisters of the teaching Order of St Joseph of Annecy opened a Roman Catholic “poor school” in an improvised Roman Catholic chapel in Monday Market Street, against a backdrop of much prejudice.

Early in 1865 the school, with 14 pupils, moved to the new church in St Joseph’s Place, where it continued until 1868.

The school has been called St Joseph’s School since at least 1886 and by 1893 there were 96 pupils on the roll.

As chronicled by Pat Kennedy in her history of the community, Sursum Corda (lift up your hearts): “As numbers in the schools increased after the war, the school buildings became woefully inadequate and plans were set in motion to build a new school.

“In 1928 a monster bazaar was held in the Corn Exchange to raise funds and Cardinal Bourne was invited to come to open it, a move that did not go down very well in the town – ‘another Romish invasion’ was the comment.”

The foundation stone of the new school was laid by the Right Reverend Monsignor William Provost Lee, Vicar General of Clifton, in 1929, and the following year the junior and senior classes moved in, while the infants remained in the old building.

In 1952 the school was granted “aided” status and in 1970 the buildings were further enlarged.

When St Augustine’s Catholic Secondary School opened in Trowbridge in 1967 the senior children were taken there by bus and in 1974 St Joseph’s was established as a primary school.

The headmaster then was Anthony Lines, who was replaced in 1982 by Barry Hickey. Mr Hickey, who still retains links with the school, retired in 2006 and the current head teacher is Sheila Jones.