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Big smiles and belly laughs at new special educational needs campus

Mike McBride
BBC News NI
BBC A young girl wearing red glasses and a green school uniform smiling at the camera. She is standing in front of a picture of some tress.BBC
Amy said the new campus is "massive"

Pupils at Ardnashee School and College have welcomed a "great" new campus for young people with special educational needs (SEN).

The new multi-million pound campus in Londonderry has opened its doors this week for the first intake of pupils.

Among them was Amy, who described the campus as "massive and great" and "really good".

It cost about £32m to construct and will provide state-of-the art facilities for about 320 pupils in the near future, acting principal Raymond McFeeters has said.

a smiling man stands in front of a new school building. He is wearing glasses, and a blue shirt and has a lanyard around his neck. A sign on the building says ASC Northland Academy while an oak leaf symbol can also be seen on the building
More than 300 pupils will be taught at the new state-of-the-art campus, principal Raymond McFeeters says

The new campus includes specialist classrooms, a sensory room, an immersive room, hydrotherapy pool, sports halls and pitches, horticulture space and accessible playgrounds.

The school is currently in the process of moving hundreds of pupils to its new campus on the Northland Road.

Mr McFeeters said the campus had been more than 10 years in the making and he was immensely proud to welcome the first cohort of pupils.

"To see the joy and delight in the faces of the kids as they came into school was something to behold," he told BBC News NI.

Martin McCallion is smiling and is wearing a black T-shirt and wearing black-rimmed glasses. Roma McCormick is also smiling while wearing a red hoodie and grey T-shirt. She has her glasses resting on the top of her head.
Parents Martin McCallion and Roma McCormick say they are both very excited their children will be able to enjoy all the fantastic facilities on offer

Currently, there are approximately 200 pupils on site, with the number expected to rise by September.

"We have four separate sites, we have a satellite site in Strathfoyle Academy and we have the upper and lower campus on the Racecourse Road and then the Northland Road campus here, so the kids are across all of those sites."

Mr McFeeters said so many families had visited the new site and were really excited that their children could avail of things like the hydrotherapy pool and sensory room.

"Parents understand that these facilities are right up there with the best in the country and it gives them that sense that their young people are being valued by the education system."

A teenage boy smiles as he stands in front of a background displaying a forest scene. he has short brown hair and is wearing a green jumper
Ethan says his new school is the "biggest" he has ever been in

Ardnashee student Ethan told BBC News NI the new school was "just amazing".

"This is probably the biggest school I've ever been in. My primary school was nowhere near this size. It takes a long time to build schools but this one was very, very quick," he said.

A teenage girl smiles as she stands in front of a background displaying a forest scene. she has short brown hair and is wearing a green jumper
Grace was keen to thank school staff as pupils arrived for the first time

Fellow pupil Grace said the new schools was "really needed".

"I just want to say thank you to the staff for making this new school," she said.

"And thank you to Mr McFeeters as well for building this. It's very important as I get to see my friends. It's exciting."

A teenage boy smiles and gives two thumbs up as he stands in front of a background displaying a forest scene. he has short brown hair and is wearing a green jumper
It is a two thumbs up endorsement from Owen for the new campus

Owen said he "loves the canteen" but it's not his favourite aspect of the new campus.

He said: "The food's lovely. The classrooms and the playground, the football pitch is obviously my favourite. This school is probably the biggest school in my life that I've ever seen. Everything is amazing."

Sensory room with projected images of a hot air balloon on the walls. Several white and black pillows and cushions can be seen scattered on the floor
The new campus has sensory and immersion rooms, which provide a safe and comfortable environment for individuals who experience sensory processing difficulties

Parent Roma McCormick said she and many other parents have been completely blown away by the new campus.

"We are just so delighted with it - it's absolutely fabulous," she said.

Ms McCormick said knowing her son is in a secure environment, where she knows he is safe and receiving a quality education, is reassuring for her as a parent.

"My own son wouldn't understand danger or if something caught his eye he could stray, so knowing it is so safe here and he can't get out anywhere and won't do anything that can harm him is very important for me."

A hydrotherapy pool with accompanying hoist and ladder
A hydrotherapy pool is among the many state-of-the-art amenities at the new campus

Martin McCallion's son, Max, was very excited about attending the new school.

"The facilities are outstanding here for our young children," said Mr McCallion.

"This investment is really needed in the north west and hopefully this is only the start of it."

'I was just buzzing'

Emma O'Kane, the coordinator of the sensory curriculum at Ardnashee, said the new facility was a fantastic place for students with complex needs to thrive.

"A lot of the children here in this class are non verbal, but their smiles when they came in this morning really told their stories," she said.

"They tell their stories through their eyes and body reactions and that tells us everything we need to know.

"We heard some laughs today, proper belly laughs that we haven't ever heard before and it was just amazing."