Our Parish
The Claretians, a community of Roman Catholic priests and brothers, were founded by Saint Anthony Claret in 1849.
They founded the Parish in 1912 and the Parish and Botwell House school have been in their pastoral care ever since.
The Claretians strive to follow their founder, St. Antony Mary Claret's “on fire” example and help wherever they are needed. Their ministries are highly diverse and vary depending on the needs of the area. They focus on seeing life through the eyes of the poor and responding to the biggest need at the time. They have a special devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. Their formal title is “Missionaries, Sons of the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
Hence, why our Parish Church is the Church of the Immaculate Heart of Mary.
It is an absolute joy to have our beautiful church and our Claretian Priests next door. The school continues to have very strong bonds with the church and work symbiotically for the good of all of the parish community and beyond. The children often visit the church to further enrich our curriculum offer and we benefit from the abundance of support that our Claritian neighbours offer us to support how we teach children about our faith and mission in Christ's light.