Shimna Integrated College

54°11′56″N 5°53′26″W / 54.198798°N 5.890528°W / 54.198798; -5.890528InformationTypeIntegrated secondary schoolMottoLearning from each otherReligious affiliation(s)MixedEstablished1994Local authoritySEELBPrincipalSteve PaganGenderMixedAge11 to 18Enrolment531Websitehttps://www.shimnaintegratedcollege.org/

Shimna Integrated College is an integrated secondary school based in Newcastle, County Down, Northern Ireland. The all-ability school was founded in 1994 with the hope of integrating young people from both sides of Northern Ireland's religious divide and giving all of its students 'self-esteem'.^[1]

Context

Integrated Education is a Northern Ireland phenomenon, where traditionally schools were segregated, either run as Catholic schools or Protestant schools. On parental request, a school could apply to 'transition' to become Grant Maintained offering 30% of the school places to students from the minority community. Lagan College was the first integrated school to open in 1981.^[2]

History

It opened in September 1994 with 60 pupils.^[3] In March 2011, Shimna became the first school in Northern Ireland to organize a gay-straight alliance.^[4]

Site

The original buildings are in the process of being replaced with a £16.5m three storey building that meets 2021 design requirements.^[3] The plans were approved at the planning committee meeting in April 2021 ^[5] with completion predicted for September 2023.

See also

• List of integrated schools in Northern Ireland
• List of secondary schools in Northern Ireland

References

External links

• Official school website