St. Patrick's Grammar School, Downpatrick
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Saint Patrick's Grammar School is a
Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
grammar school A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented secondary school ...
located in
Downpatrick Downpatrick () is a town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is on the Lecale peninsula, about south of Belfast. In the Middle Ages, it was the capital of the Dál Fiatach, the main ruling dynasty of Ulaid. Its cathedral is said to be the b ...
, County Down, Northern Ireland. It is currently owned by the De La Salle Brothers. It has an enrolment of around 725 students, with girls admitted at 6th form level. Pupils come from all over the East Down area. Working to support the ideals of this Lasallian School is a staff of 75 lay teachers. Recently, the school has been awarded the Investor in People award, and has been named a specialist school in humanities by the Department of Education.


History

Saint Patrick's Grammar School was founded in 1934 and moved to its present site in 1937. In 2009, the school celebrated its 75th anniversary. A new school building was built and opened in April 2011. The new building contains improved modern facilities including a large music department and enhanced Physical Education amenities. The PE department includes a modern gym, two indoor sports halls and two floodlit outdoor pitches.


School and community

The school and its students are linked with the local community. Extra-curricular organisations such as the St. Vincent de Paul School Conference operate within Saint Patrick's Grammar School to raise funds for worthy causes as well as out in the community, conducting regular visitations to the Lecale Lodge Nursing Home which is operated by
Four Seasons Health Care Four Seasons Health Care is a British provider of health and social care services. It also owns The Huntercombe Group, a provider of inpatient mental healthcare and brain injury rehabilitation as well as care home operator, brighterkind. Four Se ...
. In the area of Performing Arts, the school has brought a number of productions to fruition over the years, the most recent being ''
Philadelphia, Here I Come! ''Philadelphia, Here I Come!'' is a 1964 play by Irish dramatist Brian Friel. Set in the fictional town of Ballybeg, County Donegal, the play launched Friel onto the international stage. Plot ''Philadelphia, Here I Come!'' centres around Gareth ...
'' , ''
The Phantom of the Opera ''The Phantom of the Opera'' (french: Le Fantôme de l'Opéra) is a novel by French author Gaston Leroux. It was first published as a serial in from 23 September 1909 to 8 January 1910, and was released in volume form in late March 1910 by Pier ...
'' and '' Oliver!''. The school is involved in many local, county and national leagues in sports such as football, Gaelic football, hurling and
athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competi ...
. Its sports teams have achieved a number of county and province-wide titles under the guidance of the P.E. Department.


School houses

Upon admission into the school, students are placed into one of four houses (classes). These are: * Down * Killard * Lecale * Quoile * Saul (''In Year 13/14 only and in practical classes ie. Technology, music and art'') The Saul house is used as a separate class for Creative and Expressive studies in the junior school.


School building

The school once sat on Irish Street where it meets Stream Street in the town centre of
Downpatrick Downpatrick () is a town in County Down, Northern Ireland. It is on the Lecale peninsula, about south of Belfast. In the Middle Ages, it was the capital of the Dál Fiatach, the main ruling dynasty of Ulaid. Its cathedral is said to be the b ...
. It later moved to its current site accessible via a Saul Street. The site is shared by another
De La Salle Brother french: Frères des Écoles Chrétiennes , image = Signum Fidei.jpg , image_size = 175px , caption = , abbreviation = FSC , nickname = Lasallians , named_after = , formation ...
's school known as De La Salle High School. The construction of a new school building commenced in the summer of 2009. The school was constructed on the "junior" playing fields, which can be seen on the Downpatrick skyline. When completed, the previous school building was demolished and the site was converted into all-weather playing fields and tennis courts. The new school campus opened on 1 April 2011.


Notable former students and staff

* Kieran Deeny (born 1954) - medical doctor and politician *
Patrick Kielty Patrick Kielty (born 31 January 1971) is a Northern Irish comedian and television personality. Background Kielty was born in County Down, Northern Ireland, and grew up in the village of Dundrum. He is one of three sons born to the businessm ...
(born 1971) - comedian and television personality *
Maurice Hayes Maurice Hayes (8 July 1927 – 23 December 2017) was an Irish public servant and, late in life, an independent member of the 21st and 22nd Seanads. Hayes was nominated by the Taoiseach, Bertie Ahern, in 1997 and re-nominated in 2002. He also s ...
(1927-2017) - former
Northern Ireland Ombudsman The office of the NI Ombudsman, now known as the Northern Ireland Public Services Ombudsman (NIPSO), was first established in Northern Ireland in 1969. The role of an independent ombudsman was originally created as a response to the Northern Irel ...
, Chairman of the Ireland Funds and Taoiseach-appointed Senator in
Seanad Éireann Seanad Éireann (, ; "Senate of Ireland") is the upper house of the Oireachtas (the Irish legislature), which also comprises the President of Ireland and Dáil Éireann (the lower house). It is commonly called the Seanad or Senate and its memb ...
, he served as town clerk of Downpatrick in the 1960s and was awarded European Person of the Year 2003. Later, he returned to Saint Patrick's to teach. *
Eddie McGrady Edward Kevin McGrady (3 June 1935 – 11 November 2013) was an Irish nationalist politician of the Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP), who was the Member of Parliament (MP) for South Down from 1987 to 2010. McGrady was also a Member ...
(1935-2013) - former
Social Democratic and Labour Party The Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) ( ga, Páirtí Sóisialta Daonlathach an Lucht Oibre) is a social-democratic and Irish nationalist political party in Northern Ireland. The SDLP currently has eight members in the Northern Ireland ...
MP and MLA, who first won his seat in 1987 defeating the Conservative Party candidate
Enoch Powell John Enoch Powell, (16 June 1912 – 8 February 1998) was a British politician, classical scholar, author, linguist, soldier, philologist, and poet. He served as a Conservative Member of Parliament (1950–1974) and was Minister of Health (1 ...
* Damian Gorman, writer and film maker. Winner of
Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ga, Tuaisceart Éireann ; sco, label= Ulster-Scots, Norlin Airlann) is a part of the United Kingdom, situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, that is variously described as a country, province or region. Nort ...
's first individual BAFTA. He later became the school's first writer in residence *
Rigsy Rigsy (born 6 December 1978), real name David O'Reilly, is a presenter from Newcastle, Northern Ireland, currently living in East Belfast. He attended St Patrick's Grammar School, Downpatrick is a graduate of Queen's University Belfast. Broadcas ...
, (real name David O'Reilly) (born 1978) - TV and radio broadcaster with the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
presenting on '' Across The Line'' and
BBC Radio Ulster BBC Radio Ulster ( ga, BBC Raidió Uladh) is a Northern Irish radio station owned and operated by BBC Northern Ireland, a division of the BBC. It was established on New Year's Day 1975, replacing what had been an opt-out of BBC Radio 4. It is ...
since 2002 *
Gerry Kelly (broadcaster) Gerald "Gerry" Kelly (born 20 September 1948) is a Northern Irish broadcaster and journalist, best known for his presenting career at UTV where he presented the Friday night talk and variety show ''Kelly'' from 1989 until 2005. He is currently ...
TV and radio broadcaster formerly at UTV and now with
BBC Radio Ulster BBC Radio Ulster ( ga, BBC Raidió Uladh) is a Northern Irish radio station owned and operated by BBC Northern Ireland, a division of the BBC. It was established on New Year's Day 1975, replacing what had been an opt-out of BBC Radio 4. It is ...
* Ian Mitchell from the bands Bay City Rollers and
Rosetta Stone The Rosetta Stone is a stele composed of granodiorite inscribed with three versions of a decree issued in Memphis, Egypt, in 196 BC during the Ptolemaic dynasty on behalf of King Ptolemy V Epiphanes. The top and middle texts are in Ancien ...
* Members of the band
Relish A relish is a cooked and pickled product made of chopped vegetables, fruits or herbs and is a food item typically used as a condiment to enhance a staple. Examples are chutneys and the North American relish, a pickled cucumber jam eaten with ho ...
* Members of the rock band The Answer * Margaret Ritchie (born 1958) - former MP for South Down, former
Social Democratic and Labour Party The Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) ( ga, Páirtí Sóisialta Daonlathach an Lucht Oibre) is a social-democratic and Irish nationalist political party in Northern Ireland. The SDLP currently has eight members in the Northern Ireland ...
leader, MLA and Minister for Social Development, who taught in the school for a short period. * Ryan McMullan, singer songwriter that has toured with
Ed Sheeran Edward Christopher Sheeran (; born 17 February 1991) is an English singer-songwriter. Born in Halifax, West Yorkshire and raised in Framlingham, Suffolk, he began writing songs around the age of eleven. In early 2011, Sheeran independently re ...
* Conor Hazard (born 1998) - goalkeeper for Celtic. * David Morgan (footballer) (born 1994) -
footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...
formerly of
Nottingham Forest Nottingham Forest Football Club is an association football club based in West Bridgford, Nottinghamshire, England. Nottingham Forest was founded in 1865 and have been playing their home games at the City Ground, on the banks of the River Tren ...
*
Colin Murphy Colin Murphy may refer to: * Colin Murphy (comedian) (born 1968), Irish comedian * Colin Murphy (ice hockey) (born 1980), Canadian ice hockey player * Colin Murphy (footballer, born 1950) Colin Murphy (born 21 January 1950) is an English for ...
(born 1968) - comedian and broadcaster. Best known as a panellist on BBC Northern Ireland's hit show The Blame Game.


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Patrick's Grammar School, Downpatrick Grammar schools in County Down Secondary schools in County Down Educational institutions established in 1934 Downpatrick * 1934 establishments in Northern Ireland Catholic secondary schools in Northern Ireland