Saint Catherine's College Armagh ( Irish: ''Coláiste Chaitríona Ard Mhacha'') is an all level Catholic school in

Armagh Armagh ( ; ga, Ard Mhacha, , "Macha's height") is the county town of County Armagh and a city in Northern Ireland, as well as a civil parish. It is the ecclesiastical capital of Ireland – the seat of the Archbishops of Armagh, the Pri ...

, Northern Ireland. It caters for the 11-18 age group and is associated with the international group of schools served by the Society of the Sacred Heart.

History

It was formed in 1973 when the existing Convent of the

Sacred Heart The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus ( la, Cor Jesu Sacratissimum) is one of the most widely practised and well-known Catholic devotions, wherein the heart of Jesus is viewed as a symbol of "God's boundless and passionate love for mankind". This devo ...

Grammar and secondary schools in the city were re-organized on a comprehensive basis to provide secondary education for all the Catholic girls of the greater Armagh area. Saint Catherine's College was a boarding school in the earlier 1900s and was formed by the Sacred Heart trust to provide education for young girls of all backgrounds.

Facilities

Saint Catherine's College is situated on a site off the Convent Road in Armagh and the existing school buildings have been refurbished and upgraded to ensure the provision of the most modern technological and sporting facilities. A £1.5 million building program has recently been completed with the construction of a new five classroom Information and Communication Technology building. New facilities have also been added to the Irish Medium Unit.

Academics

The school caters for the full range of ability and comprises: Key Stage 3 (Years 8, 9 and 10), Key Stage 4 (Years 11 and 12) and Sixth Form (Years 13 and 14). In 2018, 73.3% of its entrants achieved five or more GCSEs at grades A* to C, including the core subjects English and Maths. Also in 2018, 81.4% of its entrants to the A-level exam achieved A* to C grades. An Sruth Gaeilge, which is an integral part of Saint Catherine's College, provides quality Irish Medium education for those who wish to build on the Irish Language competences acquired in the Bunscoileanna.

Sports

The school is involved in many sporting activities including

Gaelic football Gaelic football ( ga, Peil Ghaelach; short name '), commonly known as simply Gaelic, GAA or Football is an Irish team sport. It is played between two teams of 15 players on a rectangular grass pitch. The objective of the sport is to score by kic ...

and

camogie Camogie ( ; ga, camógaíocht ) is an Irish stick-and-ball team sport played by women. Camogie is played by 100,000 women in Ireland and worldwide, largely among Irish communities. A variant of the game of hurling (which is played by men onl ...

. In 2019, the school won the Lidl All-Ireland Schools Junior A Championship

Final.

Notable former pupils

Michelle Gildernew Michelle Gildernew (born 28 March 1970) is an Irish Sinn Féin politician from County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. She is the Member of Parliament (MP) for Fermanagh and South Tyrone, having been re-elected in June 2017 after previously holding t ...

(born 1970) - Sinn Féin politician * Carla O'Brien (born 1983) - journalist

References

External links

Official website
Buildings and structures in Armagh (city) Catholic secondary schools in Northern Ireland Schools in County Armagh Secondary schools in County Armagh {{NorthernIreland-school-stub