Future of St Finian’s looking bright as building continues

The building project at St Finian’s College is at the halfway stage, and already it’s clear to see that an institution with a long history will have the facilities to secure its future for at least as long. Speaking to the Westmeath Examiner last Wednesday, when the staff returned to prepare for the arrival of the new first years on Friday morning, the principal, John McHale outlined the background to the work.

The process began in 2016, when the Dept of Education approached school management with a proposal for expansion to accommodate demographic changes in Mullingar. The department chose St Finian’s because there was space and because it is a co-ed school, said Mr McHale.

“Those elements were attractive to the department, and Bishop Smith offered the department one of our football pitches here, for St Mary’s Special School, Delvin, which was a generous offer.

“We met planners, architects, the department, and a design was developed for the college. In November 2023, the project began, simultaneously with the primary school as well, St Mary’s (the new school next to St Finian’s is Sacred Heart).

“We’re halfway through, and as you can see, the facilities already are amazing. We have a science technology building with four state-of-the-art technology rooms on the ground floor and four state-of-the-art science rooms upstairs. We have an SEN department and a geography classroom as well. Our arts building is just around the gym there, it’s three storeys, and it has state-of-the-art facilities as well. Our gym has been totally renovated.”

While the construction work continues, there are 13 classrooms in temporary accommodation. The school buildings are being named to honour the monastic tradition of the region (the Fore Building; the Clonard Building) and the new sports and fitness centre is the Dr Harry Conway building. “Dr Conway was a student here and he represented Ireland in the 1924 Paris Olympics, in the long jump,” said Mr McHale.

Outdoor facilities include a new full-size Astro soccer pitch and six new basketball courts.

While the new Sacred Heart Primary School is a separate entity, its principal Anne-Marie Connolly and Mr McHale both told the Examiner that they hope to cooperate closely in the years ahead. The St Finian’s expansion is part of Project Nore – seven large-scale school building projects being delivered by the National Development Finance Agency (NDFA) for the Dept of Education at schools in Tipperary, Kilkenny, and Kildare as well as Westmeath.

Mr McHale concluded by expressing gratitude from himself and his colleagues to the Dept of Eduction, to JJ Rhatigan, the contractors, “who are fantastic. Every decision they make, they consult us. It’s been a really smooth experience so far. We’ve already had two state examinations while they’ve been here and the level of support during those was phenomenal – they gave us a man posted outside the exam centres, there for the entire exams, and if there was any interference at all, he was able to shut the work down.”

Enrolment is increasing. Currently it’s 896 and when the new buildings are complete, it will exceed 1,000. There are 67 teachers and eight SNAs. “I feel privileged, our staff feel privileged that we have a learning environment like this. It’s brilliant for the area. The school is a fantastic place to teach. But as I reminded staff this morning, schools are not just about buildings, they’re about the quality of the relationships in the community. That’s the key.”