Integrated Education Month - The Big Picture theme this year represents how we are all individual parts of the patchwork; whilst we are beautiful individually, we are powerful as a collective! We created a mural using self portraits of each pupil, staff member and governor as together we create the whole picture. Roisin Marshall, NICIE CEO, came to visit us to see our school, meet the pupils and to hold a question and answer session with the Students' Council.
Pictured below is School Principal Janice Marshall, CEO of NICIE Roisin Marshall, Chair of the Board of Governors David Cole-Baker with the Students' Council.
To mark Northern Ireland’s Centenary year, the UK Government developed a number of events which included the Trees for Schools Programme. Every school was offered a native tree to plant in their own grounds between October and December and Drumlins Integrated Primary School, Ballynahinch was delighted to receive a flowering cherry tree. Planting additional trees is part of a wider UK Government project to tackle climate change which was featured in the UN’s COP26 Climate Change Conference in November 2021.
Dr Terry Cross, the owner and CEO of The Hinch Distillery, Ballynahinch, was invited to visit the school to plant the tree with the members of the school’s Eco Club. Dr Cross is a patron of the Integrated Education Fund and a great friend of the school. The school looks forward to enjoying seeing the tree flourish and bloom in the school grounds in 2022 and beyond.
2021 is an exciting year for Integrated Education as it marks the 40th Anniversary of the All Children Together movement which led to the opening of the Province’s first integrated school, Lagan College in Belfast. Many other integrated schools have opened since then including Drumlins Integrated Primary School in Ballynahinch which opened with 12 Primary 1 pupils in September 2004.
The thriving school now has more than 200 pupils in attendance and choose to mark the 40th Anniversary by inviting the whole school community to nominate 40 local heroes; people who went the extra mile to help support others by shopping for them, helping with childcare and home-schooling, delivering medication, befriending others, organising community social events, providing financial support and noticing others needed help and finding the time to give it. The nominations included local individuals, chemists, care home staff, library staff and many others. Those nominated received a special ‘Goody Bag’ care package full of sweets, hand knit hat, snood and snowman, biscuits, vouchers and a range of other delights, many of which were sponsored by the generosity of local businesses. The school is hugely grateful to the local businesses for their support and hope the recipients enjoy their well-deserved early Christmas treats.
Thank you to the following businesses for supporting this initiative:
The Hinch Distillery, Montalto Estate, Subway (Ballynahinch), Coulter’s Restaurant, Stewart and Gibson’s and Colours.
Recipients of Care Packages to mark 40 years of Integrated Education
(In no particular order)
- Doreen and Alan Perry
- Carol Orr
- Clive Anderson
- Jessica Burns
- Ballynahinch Library
- Tracey McCleery
- Jackie Codd
- Christ the King, Drumaness
- Audrey, St.McCartan’s Primary School
- Ballynahinch Foodbank
- Ali Brown, Grace Fellowship
- Oakridge Nursing Home
- The Beeches
- Grove House
- Gordon’s Pharmacy, Ballynahinch
- Well’s Pharmacy, Ballynahinch
- Hannowins Pharmacy, Ballynahinch
- Saneen Farrelly
- Hugh McHale
- Mairead Baker
- Karen Baker
- Mr and Mrs Russell
- Vivien Bell
- Michelle and Gareth Kearney
- Donall Burns
- Hilary Morgan
- Carl and Lorraine Tate
- Alice Smiley
- Gill Tubman
- Stephanie Brashaw
- Debbie McKinney
- Natalie Gibson
- Christine Doyle
- Murtagh Family
- Claire Farqhuar
- Nicola Wilcox
- Jackie Pentland
- Hilary Kerr
- Rachael McConnell
- Kathleen Russell
- Leanna Theodorus
- All Classroom Assistants
- All teaching staff
- Office staff
- Lunch Supervisors
- Philip Kelly