OUR LADY AND ST PATRICK’S COLLEGE
KNOCK
ANNUAL REPORT
OF THE BOARD OF GOVERNORS
2008 - 2009
Dear Parents
I enclose the Annual Report of the Board of Governors to Parents for the year 2008/2009. It contains some essential information about the Board’s involvement in the life of the College over the last academic year.
This report chronicles the work of the College and in many ways reflects the leadership and management of the Board of Governors, the Principal and the teaching and support staff who are entrusted with the care and education of our 1262 students. As the new Principal of the College I have been encouraged by the warm welcome which I have received, the professional approach of staff and the vibrancy of the student body. I am struck by the wide range of activities and opportunities that are on offer to students and by the commitment of the staff.
At the start of the academic year Mr John Allen (Principal), Mr Patrick McAlinden (Vice-Principal), Mrs Therese Smith (History), Miss Regina Breslin, (Science Technician), Mrs Helen Riley (Science Technician), Mrs Dorothy Black (Classroom Assistant) and Mr Brendan Small (Technology Technician) left the College and I wish them best wishes for the future.
The College welcomed Mrs Emma McGlone (History), Mr Neil McGaughey (Chemistry) and Ms Siobhan Donaghy (Business Studies) as new members of the teaching staff. Mrs Pamela Peebles (Science Technician), Mr William Heaney (Technology Technician) and Ms Roisin Dornan (Study Supervisor) joined the support staff.
The report summarises the results of important examinations while other sections of the document give you an insight into some of the main events over the last school year. We keep parents, past pupils and friends of the College informed of activities and successes through the pages of our newsletter, Communiqué and by regular updates on our website. Nonetheless, it is always helpful to reflect back on what was a very successful year. I hope you find the report’s contents informative and interesting.
Yours sincerely
Dermot G Mullan
Correspondent to the Board of Governors
Annual Report of the Board of Governors
FOR THE COLLEGE YEAR 2008 - 2008
1. INTRODUCTION
The College’s Mission Statement indicates that, “Young people are to be cared for in such a way that their physical, moral and intellectual talents may develop in a harmonious manner, so that they may attain a greater sense of responsibility and a right use of freedom and be formed to take an active part in social life”.
In addition, the College has as its central objective the formation of the whole person as a follower of Christ. Catholic values are developed through the curriculum in the context of the College as a Christian Community. There is involvement of Governors, parents, teachers, support staff, students, the parish and the wider community. Our aim is to prepare the students to live in a changing social, political, cultural and technological world.
Our Lady and St Patrick’s College has as its aim the provision of an environment where students are enthusiastically involved in a wide variety of curricular activities within a well structured but flexible framework.
2. ORGANISATION AND MANAGEMENT
The Board of Governors has overall responsibility for the management of College affairs. The Scheme of Management indicates “the Board of Governors shall consist of 9 voting members, the Head of the School and any members who may be co-opted under Article 122 of the 1989 Order and where appropriate members required to be co-opted under Article 139 of that Order”.
The full Board met on eight separate occasions during the year. In addition, sub-committees of the Board met to deal with issues such as the appointment of teachers, matters relating to the LMS Budget, discipline and the admission of pupils from primary schools.
Membership of Board of Governors 2005 - 2009
The Right Reverend Monsignor Colm McCaughan
(Vice Chairperson)
Very Reverend Patrick Delargy
Mrs Maeve Toner
DENI Governors / Mr Stephen O’Brien
Mr Joseph Rice
Mr Gerard Prior
Parent / Mr Gerry Hennity (elected)
Teacher / Mr Dominic Kealey (elected)
Principal / Mr Dermot G Mullan (Correspondent)
3. Responsibilities of Governors
In particular the following areas of responsibility were dealt with by Governors.
Finance
The School Revenue Account for the year ending 31st March 2009 was prepared by the Finance Committee of the Board of Governors. The Board are responsible for securing the economical, efficient and effective management of all of the school’s resources and expenditure, including funds provided by the Department for capital assets, equipment and personnel. We enlisted the help of Moore Stephens, Certified Accountants appointed as Auditors in full accordance with the Audit Code for Voluntary Grammar Schools.
The Bursar had the responsibility of monitoring and dealing with the allocated Department of Education budget of £5,1280,126 and was directed and advised when necessary by the Board of Governors’ Finance and Audit Committee (Mr Prior, Mr O’Brien, Mr Rice and Mr Mullan). It monitored the delegated budgets given to various departments and discussed proposals regarding the most expedient use of finance in the delivery of the curriculum. Ideas and suggestions were passed on to the Board of Governors’ Finance and Audit Committees which met on various occasions to monitor and decide how the budget should be used efficiently and effectively.
It may be noted that approximately 90% of the overall budget was spent on the salaries of teachers and support staff and that the College ended the year with a small deficit of £10,963.
Transfer Procedure 2008 from Key Stage 2 to Key Stage 3
A total of 266 pupils from our contributory primary schools applied to Year 8 for admission to the College in September 2008. In total, 184 pupils were admitted by the sub-committee of the Board of Governors.
Applications / AdmissionsGrade A / 159 / 159
Grade B1 / 33 / 8*
Grade B2 / 20 / 8*
Grade C1 / 24 / 4*
Grade C2 / 15 / 2*
Grade D / 12 / 0
Others / 3 / 3*
TOTAL / 266 / 184
* Includes those upgraded due to special
circumstances and/or special provision.
College Staffing and Appointments
In order to deliver the curriculum effectively, the Board of Governors employed 83 full-time teachers, 9 part-time teachers, 5 administrative staff, 10 technicians, 6 classroom assistants, 1 librarian, 1 study supervisor, 1 nurse, 4 maintenance/caretaking staff, 11 canteen staff and 20 cleaners.
Accommodation and Resources
The maintenance personnel and caretaking staff continued to look after the College buildings and grounds, and minor improvements were carried out to the fabric of the buildings. Refurbishment and upgrading of the heating and electrical systems were completed in the main building.
The Principal and other members of senior staff attended numerous meetings of the Project Board and with the preferred bidder (BES Services) to advance planning for the new PPP school. The Project Agreement was signed with the Department of Education and BES on 28 May 2009 and the contractors came on site in 1 June. The 14000m2 new school will cost £24m and will have a full size Gaelic football pitch and a synthetic playing pitch. Further information is available on the College web site.
4. WHOLE STAFF TRAINING and INSET ARRANGEMENTS
(Directed Day) / · Child Protection training for all staff
· Meetings with Heads of Departments and Department Meetings in preparation for new school year
26 August 2008
(Directed Day) / · Autistic Spectrum Disorder training
· Chrysalis (Drug Awareness) training for tutors
· Alcohol Harm Reduction training for tutors
27 August 2008
(Directed Day) / · Cross-curricular Skills training in collaboration with Grosvenor Grammar and Newtownbreda High School
3 November 2008
(Exceptional Closure Day) / · Monitoring and Reviewing the Implementation of the NI Curriculum
· Development of AS-level and GCSE Schemes of Work
22 December 2008
(Directed Day) / · Staff Welfare
5 January 2009
(Exceptional Closure Day) / · School Improvement Planning for all staff and Governors. (Wellington Park Hotel)
6 January 2009
(Exceptional Closure Day) / · Reporting on Cross-curricular Skills
· Developing Comment Banks for pupil assessments
16 March 2009
(Exceptional Closure Day) / · Evaluation of Year 9 Schemes of Work
· Developing Coaching Skills (Building Leadership Capacity, Regional Training Unit)
17 March 2009
(Directed Day) / · Developing Year 10 Schemes of Work as part of the NI Curriculum
9 April 2009
(Exceptional Closure Day) / · GCSE/A-level Coursework Internal Standardisation Meetings
5. SUMMARY OF CURRICULUM POLICY 2008 - 2009
The Curriculum reflected the aims and objectives of the College and conformed to all statutory requirements. A copy of the daily timetable is included as Appendix A.
Junior School - Key Stage 3 (Years 8 - 10)
Junior students were introduced to academic discipline in the prescribed Learning Areas. Year 8 and 9 students studied the following subjects:
Art and Design, Drama, English, Employability, Geography, History, Home Economics, ICT, Local and Global Citizenship, Mathematics, Music, Physical Education, Religious Education, Science, Technology and Design. In addition to these subjects, students chose two Modern Languages from: French, German, Irish and Spanish. All Junior School students were involved in Education for Love programmes, and in Year 10 Careers Education classes were introduced. There were Personal Development classes for all Key Stage 3 students and Year 8 students had in addition, the Student Mentor Programme. The merit system in Junior School continued to recognise and reward students for high standards of work and behaviour. A very successful Junior School Awards Ceremony was held on Wednesday 8th October.
Senior School - Key Stage 4 (Years 11 - 12)
The curriculum catered for a wide range of interests. All students studied at least 10 GCSE subjects which included the compulsory core element of five subjects and an optional element of a further five subjects. In addition, a number of students were selected on the basis of end of Year 10 Mathematics assessment test to study Additional Mathematics as well as GCSE Mathematics. This allowed them to be entered for GCSE Mathematics at the end of Year 11 and to be entered for Additional Mathematics in Year 12. An ECDL course taught by College staff was also arranged for a number of Year 11 students. A ‘fast-track’ music GCSE course was offered as an additional GCSE subject during lunch periods. The Senior School Awards Ceremony was held on Tuesday 18th November.
Core Curriculum - studied by all students.
Careers* / Mathematics / Learning For Life and WorkEnglish Language / Religious Education / Tutorial Programme*
English Literature / Physical Education* / * non-GCSE courses
Optional Curriculum - Students chose 5 subjects from the following list:
Art & Design, Biology, Business Studies, Chemistry, Drama, French, Geography, German, History, Home Economics, I.C.T, Irish, Music, Physical Education, Physics, Science (Double Award), Spanish, Technology & Design.
Upper School (Years 13 and 14)
All students in Year 13 studied for Advanced Subsidiary level (AS-level) examinations. The module examinations were taken at the end of Year 13.
Year 14 students pursued Advanced Level (A2) courses and were entered for Module examinations in January and June. Some Year 14 students studied a combination of AS and A level subjects.
Students who did not take A-level Religious Education were required to take a modular, certified course in Religious Education. Careers Education and the Tutorial Pastoral Care Programme were compulsory for all Year 13 and Year 14 students. The Education for Love Programme (Life Issues) continued for all Year 13 students.
Any combination of AS/A-level subjects could be taken from the following:
Art & Design Home Economics
Biology Irish
Business Studies ICT
Chemistry Key Skills Unit Award:
Computing -Communication
Design & Technology -Application of number
Drama -Information Technology
Economics Mathematics
English Literature Music
French Physical Education
Further Mathematics Physics
Geography Religious Studies
German Sociology
Government & Politics Spanish
History
A number of Year 13 students also took part in the Duke of Edinburgh/President’s Award, Community Service and Student Mentor Programmes. The Upper School Awards Ceremony took place on Friday 19 December 2008 with Mr Gavin Boyd, Chief Executive (Designate) of the Education and Skills Authority as our guest speaker.
6. EXAMINATION RESULTS AND LEAVERS DESTINATIONS 2008 - 2009
GCSE and A-level results for 2008 - 2009 were excellent.
The analysis of results at Key Stage 3, GCSE and A-level are detailed in Appendix B of this report. The results are well above the average for Northern Ireland Grammar schools and place the College among the top performing schools.
High standards have been maintained and the Board of Governors express their appreciation to both staff and students for their dedication and commitment.
7. EDUCATION FOR MUTUAL UNDERSTANDING
The College continued to be involved in the Ulster Project, the Spirit of Enniskillen Programme and The Rotary Club’s ‘Tabu’ programme. A number of our students were successful in their applications this year.
Pupils throughout the College had the opportunity to meet and work with pupils from other traditions through involvement in the:
· Council for Education in World Citizenship
· Christian Education Movement
The Annual Sixth Form Symposium continued to go from strength to strength. This year’s Symposium entitled ‘Never Let a Crisis Go To Waste’ was a success and afforded Year 13 students the opportunity to reflect on current local, national and international issues and guest speakers attended from across the political spectrum.
Some other highlights of the school year were:
Rugby: Rugby teams in Years 8, 9, 11 and 12 were involved in several competitive tournaments.
Cricket: Mr N McGaughey introduced cricket to the College in Junior School.
Games Day: Mr N McGaughey and Mr P Kane took sessions with boys from the College and Monkstown High School. The boys competed in Hurling, Cricket and Rugby.
Habitat for Humanity:
The three-way link between ourselves, Grosvenor and Habitat for Humanity continued with students from both schools working at the mid-Shankill site. This joint project involved students working on site to help build affordable housing. A second project was established with ourselves and Victoria College, Belfast.