Monday 7th April 2025
On a bright sunny Monday in beautiful Arklow we were delighted to meet as a monitoring group. We were given a very warm welcome to St. Mary’s in Arklow. We were welcomed by a group of students and had a wonderful tour of the school. Every corridor had evidence of the school’s atmosphere of welcome, scattered along the corridors were messages welcoming students to the school in all the languages of the school. We visited notice boards, language walls, and several classrooms. The sense of creativity surrounding the s School of Sanctuary message was inspiring. Our two tour guides were warm, funny and full of interesting information. There was a true sense that the schools of sanctuary message isn’t a tick the box exercise but a way of life here in St Marys. We witnessed an abundance of evidence of the learn act and share components of schools of sanctuaries. It is embedded in the culture and ethos of the school.
The visit culminated in a cultural event in the main hall, it was MCed by two amazing students who brought warmth and a sense of importance to the event. Students from every cultural background in the school were invited onto the stage – each group gave a meaningful representation of what their culture means to them. We were awed with poetry recitals, personal stories and anecdotes, dance routines and some very courageous narratives of life events that led these students to Ireland. It was a very emotional and powerful performance. The overwhelming sense of sanctuary and safety in St Mary’s was evident from the accounts given by these wonderful students on the stage.
Visiting schools and colleges on the day included Carlow Institute, Bunclody Community College (a Champion SoS), St Cronan’s NS, Bray (a member SoS) and SETU, as well as some local neighbouring schools – and two TDs were also there!
It was with great pride and delight that we announced to the school community that we were welcoming St. Mary’s into the champion school of sanctuary family. It is greatly deserved by students and staff in the school. They are a beacon of hope for the entire county of Wicklow.