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The Business Support Centre (i3) at Southern Regional College has recently launched a collaborative project with Teeling Whiskey Company, a Dublin-based independent Irish whiskey manufacturer. Teeling Whiskey Company was established in 2012 and a new distillery was developed and opened in the Newmarket area of Dublin in 2015 – the first new distillery to be opened in Dublin in over 125 years.
The FUSION programme is a cross-border collaboration facilitated by InterTradeIreland with Southern Regional College acting as the knowledge base for the project. Páraic Kelly, a talented engineering graduate, has been recruited and partnered with industrial mentors Iain Wood and Alex Chasko from Teeling Whiskey Company, and academic mentor Alistair Quinn from the Business Support Centre (i3) at Southern Regional College. The project is of 18 months duration and is focused on the development and improvement of operational processes, both at the Dublin distillery site and the company’s warehousing facility in Greenore, Co. Louth.
Having been launched in March 2016, the project has already shown promising potential for success. Examples of early progress at the distillery site include preparation for Origin Green compliance, a national sustainability programme, and the investigation of dust extraction systems for the grain silos, while examples of advancement at the warehousing facility include a redesign of the process paperwork and the initial development stages of a single cask emptying station. This exciting partnership is set to deliver significant operational improvements for the industrial partner.
For more information on the support available from The Business Support Centre (i3) contact 028 3025 9664 or alternatively email i3@src.ac.uk
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Over 150 Students from local high schools celebrated their success recently at an awards ceremony for students participating on the School Partnerships’ Programme (SPP) at Southern Regional College, Newry Campus.
Southern Regional College welcomed Year 12 students from Kilkeel High School, Newry High School, Newtownhamilton High School, Rathore School Newry, St Columban’s College Kilkeel, St Joseph’s High School Crossmaglen, St Joseph’s Boys High School Newry, St Mark’s High School Warrenpoint, St Mary’s High School Newry and St Paul’s High School Bessbrook to celebrate their achievements at this special awards ceremony.
The School Partnership Programme enables Year 11 and 12 students in the school sector to sample areas including, digital imaging, joinery, beauty, hospitality, hairdressing and motor mechanics to name a few, in order to make a more informed career decision. The students on the SPP programme attend SRC one day per week for two years and achieve recognised qualifications on completion of their studies.
Guest Speaker on the day was Ms Breda McAteer, Senior Human Resource Manager, O’Hare and McGovern
Best in School Awards were presented to Pavlina Zapletalova from Kilkeel High School, Plamen Atanasov from Newtownhamilton High School, Tom Martin from Rathore School Newry, Tiernan O’Hare from St Columban’s College, Alanna O’Neill from St Joseph’s High School, Nathan Fegan from St Joseph’s Boys High School, Kelly-Anne Beggs from St Mark’s High School, Caoimhe Quinn from St Mary’s High School and Liam Mackin from St Paul’s High School Bessbrook. SPP Student of the Year was awarded to Plamen Atanasov from Newtownhamilton High School. The Endeavour award was awarded to Sarah Wright from Kilkeel High School.
Brian Doran, Chief Executive, Southern Regional College, commenting on the close partnership working between local schools and SRC said: “The partnership between Southern Regional College and the schools in the Newry and Mourne Area Learning Community provides opportunities to pupils to benefit from a wider curriculum by undertaking a range of courses not available to them in school. The various courses lead to nationally-recognised qualifications that will not only help pupils make better career choices but will also help them get employment in the continuing challenging economic environment.”
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SRC Student and Norbrook employee Ryan Tully from Rathfriland, was named as a Finalist at the Apprentice of the Year Awards in Belfast.
He is currently on an apprenticeship programme in Plumbing and Heating at Southern Regional College, Newry Campus and is employed by Norbrook, Newry.
The awards ceremony, organised by the Department for Employment and Learning, was held at the Titanic Signature Building, Belfast and was hosted by local radio presenter Pete Snodden.
Congratulating the award winners, Employment and Learning Minister Dr Stephen Farry said: “These Awards highlight how Apprenticeships and the new Higher Level Apprenticeships are supporting our local economy by ensuring our workforce is getting the skills needed and valued by local employers.”
ApprenticeshipsNI is part funded by the European Social Fund. The Apprentice of the Year Awards were part supported by City & Guilds and Fujitsu.
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Southern Regional College (SRC), and local farmers from Armagh, Newry, Mourne and Down celebrated the success of the Prince’s Countryside Fund (PCF) programme Protect your Sons and Daughters. Financed by HRH the Prince of Wales, the PCF was a new initiative aimed at delivering Farm Health & Safety as well as Business Enterprise Skills to local farm families.
The programme was aimed at young farmers and members of the farming family but particularly those living in the border areas of Northern Ireland, isolated areas such as the Mourne Mountains and those young farmers who for various reasons were unable to attend agricultural college.
The aim of the PCF programme was to provide 60 farmers with accredited training, workshops and study visits to enhance their management skills and to support the sustainability of the agri-food industry. The programme also addressed the need for health and safety, raising awareness of the many dangers of working in the rural community and the hazards faced by farmers on a daily basis.
David Vint, SRC Assistant Director commented “It is great to see programmes like this having a genuine positive influence within our farming communities. It is our ambition at SRC to be actively promoting community education within our region and be an agent for economic change. This project had a real impact on farmer families lives and helped farmers gain skills and confidence that will sustain farming in our local community”.
Noel Lavery, Permanent Secretary at the Department of Agriculture & Rural Development said that “Education is key to DARD strategy and we have worked hard on the Farm Safety Partnership with the UFU and HSENI. We are absolutely committed to improving safety on farms. SRC’s initiative is something we are glad to support”.
Also speaking at the celebration event was Mr Ian Marshall, President of the Ulster Farmers Union. “It has been a privilege for the UFU to be associated with the work the SRC has delivered for the benefit of those in the agri-food sector. Training, education and knowledge transfer with a focus on health and safety on farms has proved extremely beneficial to all that participated'
For further information on the Prince’s Countryside Fund please contact Heather Kavanagh kavanaghh@src.ac.uk 0300 123 1223
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St Joseph's Boys High School, Newry held a very successful 24 hour Spinathon at the school last week with the event raising much needed funds for the Kevin Bell Repatriation Trust and Alzheimer's Society NI.
Hundreds of participants took part including local MLA Conor Murphy.
Mr Mark Gallagher orgaised the event with help from Mrs Jeaneanne Muckian and Miss Catherine Mallon and staff Mr Paul Mulholland, Mrs Sharon Byrne and Mr Kenny Morgan who kept going over the 24hrs.
Thousands of pounds were raised and the funds will be presented in the near future.
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Two schools representing the Newry area in the CRASH Services Northern Ireland Primary School Road Safety Quiz finished 2nd and 3rd at the finals, which were held at the NI Fire & Rescue Training Centre in Belfast on Monday 14th March.
Dromintee Primary School, with a team of Sarah Graham, Sean Taheny, Leah McCreesh and Ciaran Tiernan were second while in third place was St.Patrick’s Primary School, Crossmaglen. Their team included Aaron O'Neill, Aodh Murphy, Aodhan Donnelly and Sean Hand. They were narrowly beaten by St.Mary’s PS Altinure, which is a rural school in the North West.
The Road Safety Council of Northern Ireland have been running the quiz for Primary 7 school children for over 20 years. All the finalists had qualified from regional heats organised by local road safety committees. Over 80 teams initially entered across the 6 committee areas.
The table quiz format ensured that the children learnt about road safety issues in a fun way. There was a mixture of serious messages, facts and figures as well as general knowledge questions. Each of the children who took part received a certificate and road safety goody bag.
Pat Martin, Chair of the Road Safety Council of NI, a former primary school teacher, said "I have been a keen supporter of this event over many years The Quiz is a great way for our children to learn the importance of Road Safety in their lives. Everyone involved is encouraged to take the important lessons back to their homes and schools.
Special Guests on the night were Inspector Rosie Leech from PSNI Roads Policing and Alan Walmsley, NIFRS Assistant Chief Fire Officer Alan Walmsley.
Inspector Leech said that she was humbled and delighted to see so many young people present who would soon be teenagers and young drivers of the future, learning about road safety and participating in such a worthwhile competition. She also expressed her gratitude to the volunteers of the Road Safety Council and its Committees for the time and effort that they put into organising and running both the regional heats and the Northern Ireland Finals.
Assistant Chief Fire Officer, Mr Walmsley, commented that NIFRS were delighted to provide the venue for the evening and support the Road Safety Council in all its activities. He said that every day his officers are called upon to visit the scenes of at least two serious road traffic collisions on Northern Ireland’s roads to provide help and rescue for ordinary people injured and trapped in vehicles.
Jonathan McKeown from event sponsors CRASH Services said, “As a local business we are delighted to be able to support the NI Primary School Quiz. We are involved in accident management and breakdown recovery services, so we have a close connection with road users and we are pleased to get involved with road safety projects like this. We look forward to supporting this event for many years in the future”.
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St Joseph’s Boys' High School Newry are hosting a Sponsored 24 Hour Spinathon from 12 noon Wednesday 23rd March to 12 noon Thursday the 24th of March with all money raised going to support the work of The Kevin Bell Repatriation Trust and Newry & Mourne Alzheimer’s Society.
The Alzheimer's Society is the leading care and research organisation for people with all forms of Dementia, their families and carers. It provides information and education, advocacy and counseling, support for carers and quality day, home and respite care. It provides quality dementia training for healthcare professionals and promotes good practice in dementia care. It funds medical and scientific research and campaigns for improved health and social services and greater public understanding of dementia.
The Kevin Bell Repatriation Trust was founded by the family and friends of young Newry man Kevin Bell who died in an accident in America. The Trust aims to alleviate the financial hardship of bereaved families repatriating the body (bodies) of loved one(s) who have died abroad in sudden or tragic circumstances back to Ireland.
Speaking at the launch of the event which was attended by Mayor of Newry, Mourne & Down Cllr Michael Ruane, Colin Bell of the Kevin Bell Repatriation Trust and Margaret Convery of the Newry & Mourne Alzeimer’s Society, Principal of St Joseph's Mr Declan Murray said “We understand that no school exists in isolation. We want to celebrate our continuing success with the community around us and our Spinathon is another example of how we here at St Joseph’s plan on playing an even more active role in community life. Parents, students and staff will all be getting ‘on their bike’ for the big charity drive, Pedal power is the name of the game for our latest fund raising initiative and these two deserving local charities are the winner”
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Clare Reel and Michael O’Grady from St Oliver’s Primary School, Carrickrovaddy are on their way to the YouthSpeak Grand Final on the 8th of March after qualifying at their regional heat.
Environmental Youth Speak is an annual competition run by the majority of Councils in the province and has been running for over sixteen years.
Newry, Mourne and Down District Council Chairperson, Councillor Mickey Ruane hosted pupils from over forty schools across the District at this year’s junior and senior Council heats.
The competition challenges Primary and Secondary school pupils to impress a panel of judges by presenting an environmentally themed, five minute speech. This year the topics were ‘The adventures of a waste warrior’ for the junior section and ‘Let’s send our waste to a better place’ for the senior section.
After two highly competitive heats the judging panel chose Clare Reel and Michael O’Grady from St Oliver’s Primary School, Carrickrovaddy as this year’s junior winners and Lucia Orsi from Assumption Grammar School, Ballynahinch as the senior winner. All pupils will now go forward to represent the Council at the Grand Final being held in March in Mossley Mill, Newtownabbey.
Speaking to the pupils and their guests Councillor Ruane said, “I can only but admire all the pupils who took part in this year’s Environmental Youth Speak. You have put a great deal of effort into researching the issues and have impressed me with how well you have been able to express your views. You are a credit to your schools and families who all should rightly be very proud of you”.
Chairman Ruane added, “I am sure that our worthy winners will continue the good tradition of Newry, Mourne and Down pupils in this competition when they compete against their peers from other Councils in the Final in Newtownabbey.”
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Year 10 and Year 11 pupils from St Joseph’s High School, Newry have been presented with awards for their outstanding contributions to school life during their time at Key Stage 3.
The distinguished guests of honour who presented the awards included governor of the school, Rev. Canon Brown and past teachers, Mrs Lillian McGuigan, Mr Sean McGuigan and Mr Brendan Burns.
Each guest spoke passionately about their memories of St Joseph's as well as their pride in helping to present the awards to such hard working and diligent pupils. Canon Brown further reminded the pupils that the aspiration of all the staff, parents and the school's governors is that each and every pupil works to their best ability and fulfils their individual potential in as many ways as possible, including academic, sporting, pastoral and spiritual development.
Separate Duke of Edinburgh Bronze awards for Walking Expeditions were presented by Mrs McGuigan to the following pupils from the Learning Support Centre: Kealan Rafferty, Stephen Curtis & Cathal Hughes.
Individual awards were presented to the following pupils for achievements in key subjects:
Best in Maths: Alwyn Bino
Best in English: Nial Mc Gurk
Best in ICT: Ryan Bennett
Best in PE: Jason Mooney
Science: Adam Hart
Best in LSC: Cathal Hughes
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