Catherine Martin TD Formally Opens St Colmcilles Community School Sports and Arts Complex

25 Oct

Catherine Martin TD cutting the ribbon to officially open The Sports and Arts Complex. Joined on stage by Alan Burns (Bright Design Architects), Seamus Dooley (JSD Contracting), John McKennedy (SCCS Principal) and representatives from the Parents Association, Committee and Parish

On Thursday 5th October 2023 the extension to St Colmcilles Community School Sports Hall, designed by Bright Design Architects was formally opened by Catherine Martin, the Minister for Tourism, Culture, Arts, Gaeltacht, Sport and Media of Ireland. Designs for the Sports Hall extension were originally drawn up in 2014. Planning Permission was granted in 2018. Construction of the extension commenced in August 2022 and was completed in early September 2023.

Link to photos of St Colmcilles Sports and Arts Complex in ‘Our Work’

As a practice we are very proud of the extension completed here at St. Colmcille’s. For us this has been a project almost 10 years in the making - we started initial concepts in 2014. From the outset John McKennedy (School Principal) had a very clear vision of what was needed - a building of 3 possibilities:

1. To maximise the stage performance potential of the existing hall

2. To provide proper and permanent changing facilities for school and after hours use and

3. To deliver a multi purpose room

Central to this was the realisation that this extension could improve upon and indeed secure a future revenue stream that the school needs but also to greatly improve the facilities for present and future generations of students.

Catherine Martin TD joins a tour of the new extension with Alan Burns and John Power (Bright Design Architects), Seamus Dooley (JSD Contracting) and students from St Colmcilles Community School

The design concept was very simple - sink the changing rooms below a stage and place the multi function room up above to get views to the hall and mountains beyond.

Clear circulation from entry to pitch side, full universal access for all and energy efficiency were all central.

We hope that this extension will be an asset to the school and wider community for years to come. Every facility here has a dual use and double purpose whether for school use, local sports, theatre groups or other clubs and groups. It really is a very functionally lean building.

External view of the new Sports and Arts Complex at St Colmcilles Community School

Finally, the combined effort taken to deliver it is something to be celebrated also. It is very important to thank the wider team behind the project in addition to John McKennedy, most notably Audrey Rowland and the Board of Management, Rachel in SCCS Accounts, the main contractor- JSD, managed by Colm Kennedy and his team and subcontractors on site, the various consultants and design team members. Without the collective effort of all at various stages it would not have been possible.