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        Student Charter
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        Policy on Bullying
        Dress Code
        Recognition of
           Students
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History

Catherine McAuley, Westmead was established by the Parramatta congregation of the Sisters of Mercy in 1966 as a regional Catholic High School for girls in Years 7 to 10. In 1983, permission was granted for the school to extend to offer Years 11 and 12.  The first HSC class graduated in 1987.

Catherine McAuley caters for girls in year 7 - 12, and has a student body of over 1050 students, with 300 in the senior years, supported by a committed, dedicated and highly skilled staff of 85.  

A Strong Tradition 

Catherine McAuley was born in Ireland in 1778 and knew hardship early in her life. After the death of her parents Catherine and her siblings relied on the charity of relatives for survival.  

Catherine was a gentle, compassionate woman whose early experiences shaped her life’s work in caring for the disadvantaged. An inheritance enabled her to establish a centre to assist the poor of Dublin, known as the House of Mercy. 

Her faith in the God of Mercy, her commitment to the Good News of Jesus Christ, led her to dedicate herself to serving the poor, sick and uneducated. Throughout her life she was deeply aware of the human suffering caused by social, economic and religious injustice. 

Catherine’s community at Callan in Ireland was invited by Cardinal Moran to work in Australia and the Sisters arrived in Parramatta in 1888. When a new Catholic school for girls was opened at Westmead in 1966 under the charter of the Sisters of Mercy, it was a fitting tribute to name the school in honor of Catherine McAuley. 

The values of the Sisters of Mercy still guide the school and its community into the 21^st century, as the school motto encourages students “to strive for higher things” – faith, hope and love.

History of the School Crest
The Catherine McAuley badge contains, in the lower section, the seven bars that were in the Mercy emblem of the Sisters of Mercy.  These bars represent the seven spiritual and corporal works of Mercy.  They also signify the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit.

At the base of the crest is the school motto "Altiora Quaerite" which can be translated as "To strive for Higher Things"

Principals of Catherine McAuley