Two former Church of Ireland schools near the south Armagh border, each over 100 years old, are closing in August due to low pupil numbers.
Philip Bradfield of The News Letter reports that he has “ visited both schools and found two close-knit ‘families’ very proud of their past but also concerned for the future of pupils and staff”.
The report in Wednesday’s issue continues:
Aghavilly Primary School is about six miles from the border. To find it, you drive four miles south of Armagh and then up a country lane for around a mile.
Founded in 1896 as a Church of Ireland parish school, the first word that comes to mind when you finally locate it is “idyllic”.
Set among rolling green hills and traditional Ulster farmsteads, the teachers are proud of its heritage. It has just 12 pupils at present although it has had bigger classes in the past.
On January 6, Education Minister John O’Dowd announced that both it and Keady Primary School are to close due to falling numbers.
Set in a predominantly nationalist area, the schools are mainly attended by Protestants while nationalist families mostly send their children to schools managed by the Catholic Church. UUP MLA Danny Kennedy says there is a fear that the closure of the Keady school in particular could mean “the closing of the gate” for the Protestant minority in the area.
More at:
http://www.newsletter.co.uk/news/local/border_schools_prepare_for_their_final_lessons_1_3451095