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In line with the need to provide Catholic Services in Linlithgow and the surrounding areas, there was a requirement to provide the children with Catholic Education. Initially this was the task of the Sisters of Mercy. In the 19th Century the parish was dedicated to St Joseph and so the school took St. Joeseph’s as it name. This is still the case today.
Classes were originally held in the Baird Hall and Catholic pupils came from other villages close to Linlithgow, many travelling on foot each day. In the 1880s the provision of education was handed over to teachers. Originally there were two teachers for 150 pupils. The first St Joseph’s school building was completed in 1892 and was situated in the grounds of the Church.
The provision of education to the children of Linlithgow was difficult due to the fact that children were often required to work on farms. The health conditions in and around the town often caused further problems for the teachers and on several occasions the school had to be closed temporarily due to infectious diseases.
Prior to the end of World War 1, St Joseph’s (like other Catholic Schools) had not been part of the State School System. This position was changed by the Education Act of 1918. Throughout the early 20th Century the School continued to Flourish.
By 1949 the school roll had grown so much that there was not enough room in the school for all the pupils. Some classes were held in different buildings across the town. At this time the school housed both primary and junior secondary pupils. The more academically gifted pupils attended St Mary’s in Bathgate. In 1955 the Junior Secondary School moved to new premises in Bo’ness. However this did not alleviate all the accomodation problems and the authorities agreed to build a new St Joseph’s Primary School. In 1963 the present St. Joseph’s on Preston Road was opened and, with the benefit of some welcome enhancements in the 1990’s, it thrives there today.
With the arrival of the Regional Councils and the introduction of Comprehensive Education the ties with Bo’ness as provide of the junior secondary education ended in the late 1970s. All secondary pupils went to St. Mary’s Bathgate. In the mid 1990s, with the closure of St. Mary’s, to make way for the new Secondary School in Livingston, Linlithgow pupils changed to St. Kentigern’s Blackburn.
Today, the teachers of both St. Joseph’s and St. Kentigern’s work in close partnership with the Father Pat and the parents of the parish to provide a thriving Catholic Education for the children.