St Joseph's College, Enniskillen

St. Joseph's College is a boys' secondary school located in Enniskillen, County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. It lies within the Western Education Authority area. The college is a member of the Fermanagh Learning Community with links to the South West College, Enniskillen.

St. Joseph's College, Enniskillen
Address
Chanterhill Road Enniskillen , County Fermanagh , BT74 6DE Northern Ireland
Information
Type	Maintained secondary school
Religious affiliation(s)	Roman Catholic
Established	1960
Principal	Helena Palmer
Gender	Boys
Age	11 to 18
Enrolment	287[1]
Colour(s)
Website	https://stjosephscollegeenniskillen.co.uk/

History

The college opened in 1960 and was originally under the care of the Presentation Brothers.^[2] Bryan Gallagher was principal of St. Joseph's from 1984 until his retirement in 1996. He then became a successful author and popular radio guest on John Peel's Home Truths, a contributor to RTE’s Sunday Miscellany, and a presenter for Radio Ulster’s Thought for the Day.^[3]

In 2015, Helena Palmer was appointed the school's first female principal.^[4]

Location and Facilities

It is located on a nine acre site at Drumclay, Enniskillen. The school building includes specialist classrooms for science, art and design, computers, home economics and music.^[5]

Admissions

The college recruits students from the parishes of Enniskillen, Botha, Pobal, and Cleenish.^[6]

Approximately 10% of students are from non-English speaking families including families from Poland, Hungary, Lithuania, Moldova, Latvia and Syria.^[7]

Academics

Students have the opportunity of studying a broad range of subjects and to enter for GCSE, A-Level and BTech examinations. A total of 96% of the students who entered the GCSE exams were awarded five or more A*-C grades. In the same year, 63.6% of the students who entered the A-Level exams were awarded three or more A*-C grades.^[8]

A 2011 ETI (Education and Training Inspectorate) inspection found that the quality of education provided at St. Joseph's was "very good".^[9]

Sporting activities

Students can participate in a range of sporting activities including Gaelic football, soccer, athletics and badminton.^[10]

Community activities

Students from the college have been involved in supporting a variety of local charitable organisations. These include Enniskillen Food Bank, Action Mental Health: New Horizons, and Pieta House.^[11]

Notable former pupils

• Adrian Dunbar - actor^[12]
• Declan O'Dare - architect^[13]
• Jamie Ray - footballer