Ambrose was born into a Roman Christian family and grew up in Milan.
Legend has it that when Ambrose was an infant, a swarm of bees settled in his mouth and left behind a drop of honey. His father considered this to be a sign of his future eloquence and they left him honeyed tongue.
When he grew up, he was serving a governor when he was unexpectedly made Bishop of Milan in 374AD because of hoe popular he was. His teaching was so full of love and sweet words and he helped convert many people including Saint Augustine.
He is the patron saint of bees, beekeepers and candle makers.
Saint Ambrose's feast day is 7th December.
At St Ambrose, we have a house point system, which involves four houses. These houses are named after local saints.
When children join Saint Ambrose they are allocated to a house which is represented by a different colour: red, blue, yellow or green.
A pupil can obtain house points for excellent homework, good attendance, following our school rules: be ready, be respectful and be safe, trying their very best and following our Catholic mission: 'we do our best by following Jesus'.
Each week, the points collected across the school are counted and during assembly children are updated on the weekly house winning team. The house point trophy gets decorated with the winning house teams coloured ribbons and this is displayed in school. At the end of each half term, there are awards given to the overall winning house e.g. extra play time.
He is the patron saint of our yellow house team.
Chad, known as the Apostle of the Midlands, was born in Northumbria. He and his three brothers all grew up to become priests.
He paid special attention to the practices of self-denial, humility and study and followed the Apostles example by travelling through the towns and villages of his diocese on foot, rather than on horseback, preaching the Gospel as he went. Chad was well known for his humility and simplicity of life.
Chad became Bishop of Mercia in 669 and Wulfhere, first Christian king of Mercia, gave him land to establish his see at Lichfield. This is where he built a church and monastery.
He died in Lichfield on 2nd March 672 after an illness which lasted seven days and after receiving the final sacraments of the Church.
Some of Saint Chad's relics are in the cathedral of his name in Birmingham and a 7th Century manuscript, known as Saint Chad's Gospel, is preserved in Lichfield Cathedral Library.
He is the patron saint of the Catholic Archdiocese of Birmingham and astronomers.
Saint Chad's feast day is 2nd March.
Saint Nicholas Owen is the patron saint of our blue house team.
Nicholas Owen was born in Oxford around 1562 and trained as a carpenter and joiner.
During the reign of Henry VIII, Nicholas served the Jesuit priests in England for two decades by constructing hiding places for them in big houses throughout the country. This was a time when the penalty for discovering Catholic priests in England was torture and death. Bravely, he worked on his own throughout the evening and night, carving concealed rooms out of stone walls or ground. An example of his work can be found at Harvington Hall, Kidderminster. Without his help, hundreds of English Catholics would have been deprived of the sacraments.
Nicholas Owen was eventually captured and taken to the Tower of London and brutally tortured. He died in March 1606 without giving away any of his secrets.
He is the patron Saint of illusionists and escapologists.
Saint Nicholas Owen’s feast day is 22nd January.
Saint Richard is the patron saint of our green house team.
Richard was born in around 1197 in Wych (now Droitwich) near Worcester. He was orphaned when he was a young boy but managed to regain his fortune and received an excellent education at Oxford, Paris, and Bologna, Italy.
He studied for the priesthood with the Dominicans at Orleans and was ordained in 1243. Richard insisted upon strict adherence to discipline among the clergy, aided the poor and challenged any corruption that was present in the Church and the royal court. However, it was his hospitality, kindness, teaching and patience that won him the hearts of all who knew him.
Richard was canonized in 1262, and his tomb became a popular shrine noted for its miracles until the Reformation in England. The life of Saint Richard is depicted on the walls covered with mosaics at the Church of the Sacred Heart in Droitwich.
He is the patron Saint of Droitwich.
Saint Richard’s feast day is 3rd April.
Saint Wulstan is the patron saint of our red house team.
Wulstan was born around 1008 at Long Itchington in Warwickshire. He became a Benedictine monk at Worcester Cathedral Priory and Bishop of Worcester in 1062.
He was a social reformer who worked hard to alleviate the suffering of the poor. Wulstan was anxious that country people should have the chance to go to Mass so he encouraged the building of churches on rural manors. He also undertook large-scale rebuilding work of Worcester Cathedral, Hereford Cathedral, Tewkesbury Abbey and many other churches in the three counties area.
Wulstan was self-disciplined and refused to eat meat again after he was distracted while he was celebrating Mass by the smell of a dinner roasting in the kitchen. His preaching was said to have often moved people to tears.
There is a shrine of Saint Wulstan in Worcester Cathedral. He was canonised in 1203 and is the patron saint of vegetarians.
Saint Wulstan’s feast day is 19th January.