Eight schools receive ‘Spirit of Catholic Education’ awards

To mark Catholic Schools Week 2020, the Diocese of Down and Connor, recognising and paying tribute to the inspiring work within its schools, has presented eight schools from across the diocese with the ‘Spirit of Catholic Education Award’ held in St Mary’s University College in Belfast.

Catholic Schools Week is an annual celebration which commemorates the ongoing and inspirational contribution of Catholic schools to the education and faith formation of children and young people.

Each year, the celebration provides a timely focus on the role and significance of the school family as experienced within the lives of children and young people today. It also provides an opportunity to affirm and pay tribute to the ongoing work of teachers as they seek to form young people in their intellectual, moral, spiritual and social development.

Addressing representative students, teachers and principals from the award winning schools, Fr Edward McGee, Director of the Catholic Schools’ Support Service for the diocese said that the awards “highlight that schools across this diocese not only exhibit a multi-cultural, multi-faith, social, ethnic and academic diversity but, inspired and motivated by their faith-based mission and ethos, these schools uniquely respond on a daily basis to the pastoral and academic needs of all children in a respectful, tolerant and inclusive manner”.

Fr McGee said that each school recognised “has made a unique contribution to recognising the particular needs of their student body and have created a truly inclusive school environment in which children are nurtured, valued, loved and educated”.