Over 160 students have joined the Sixth Form at St Paul’s High School, Bessbrook. Pictured is the entire Year 13 group on their first day back at school,with their Year Head, Ms Christine Fearon.

Students returning to school as members of the Sixth Form at St Paul’s High School join the largest ever group of students studying Post-16 courses at the Bessbrook school.

The new Year 13 group has over 160 students, joining with their 120 counterparts in Year 14 to make the largest ever Post 16 intake.  The larger than expected intake is a result of outstanding GCSE results which were achieved in recent public examinations.

The new Sixth Form students have a wider than ever choice as St Paul’s boasts nearly thirty subjects in the Post 16 curriculum, including the full range of academic and vocational options, including BTEC Construction, BTEC Sport and Performance, Drama & Theatre Studies, Music and CACHE (Certificate Course in Children’s Care and Education)

Students in Sixth Form at St Paul’s will be offered a specially designed pastoral programme to complement their academic studies, including a peer mentoring programme, a ten-week drugs and alcohol awareness programme, Young Enterprise training and experience and a Success Skills Programme for young women.  This will augment the well established St Vincent de Paul Society and the St Paul’s International Aid Projects to Romania and Kenya which Year 13 students will be involved in during the coming school year.

Head of Year 13, Ms Christine Fearon welcomed all of the new students and wished them well in their studies.  Speaking to students on their first day back to school, Ms Fearon congratulated students on the excellent GCSE grades achieved and pointed to the immense potential within each student, adding that she hoped that this would be maximised over the coming years at St Paul’s.

Principal, Mr Oliver Mooney, in welcoming the new Sixth Form to St Paul’s, said that he looked forward to working with the new intake and hoped that the students obtained the full benefit of the St Paul’s experience, including the wide breath of diverse extra-curricular activities currently on offer, including Sport, Dance, Art & Design and Drama.