St Michael’s Roman Catholic School was originally founded in Hitchin in 1903 having been founded by The Edmundian Fathers and later the Assumptionist Fathers as an Independent Catholic Boys School in Hitchin as St Michael’s College.  In 1968 the School became a State School and moved to new premises in Sandown Road, Stevenage.  St Angela’s was founded in 1968 by the Sisters of Charity of Jesus and Mary as a Catholic Girls School.  As with St Michael’s (and in line with County Policy) the School was a five form entry school resulting in a school population of approximately 650 pupils and students.

As a result of demographic trends, the Governing Bodies of both schools (with the support of the Diocese of Westminster and the Local Authority) amalgamated both schools to form The John Henry Newman School in 1987.  The site of St Angela’s was chosen largely because of its excellent accessibility; the St Michael’s site was sold for housing development and the proceeds returned to the Diocese.