Newtownabbey Community High School

Coordinates: 54°39′32″N 5°54′36″W / 54.659°N 5.910°W / 54.659; -5.910

Newtownabbey Community High School was a secondary school in Newtownabbey, Northern Ireland.

Newtownabbey Community High School, founded in 1994, is a controlled, co-educational school providing secondary level education for girls and boys of all ability levels. The school occupies spacious buildings on a mature wooded site and its location on the Shore Road at Whitehouse allows easy access on foot, and by public transport from the Greater Newtownabbey area, Greenisland and Belfast.

School in the Community

The school has become an important part of the surrounding community and the greatest majority of adolescents from the near Rathcoole Estate attend the school. Recently the School has had to donate a section of the building to keep the neighbouring Whitehouse Primary School running until the School was rebuilt due to being demolished after an arson attack.

Newtownabbey Community High School, also had an arson attack on 30 July 2006 which involved the Music Room and the Special Needs room being destroyed and causing a lot of smoke damage to the Assembly Hall and the other Class Rooms. The fire at NCHS celebrated its 10th Anniversary in July 2016,^[1]

Curriculum

In line with the Northern Ireland Education Order, Newtownabbey Community High offers each child a broad and balanced curriculum. Key Stage 3 offers a wide range of subjects including : Mathematics, Technology, Science, Music, Languages (French and Spanish), English, Learning for Life & Work, PSHE (Personal, Social and Health Education), ICT, Physical Education, Art, Home Economics, Religious Education, History, Geography, Drama, and the building also contains a Hair Salon.

With Key Stage 4 and GCSE the School also supports a Careers Experience programme in which pupils can get experience by working a 1 week long apprenticeship or if they choose the Army they will get 1 week in the Military then they will be able to do an apprenticeship for the following week.

Pastoral Care

The school regards the well-being of each individual pupil as of the utmost importance. Each pupil has a Form Tutor who deals with day-to-day matters, and each year group has a Key Stage Head responsible for general welfare and guidance. Parents can discuss their child’s progress and receive information through regular evening meetings with Subject Teachers, Form Tutors and Key Stage Heads. Individual interviews with Key Stage Heads, Vice-Principal or Principal can also be arranged.

Extra Curricular Activities

Newtownabbey Community High school values the place of extra-curricula activities. A wide range of clubs and societies is offered. These include Art Club, Choir, Craft Club, Educational trips to Europe, Environmental Club and Scripture Union, Sports activities include Athletics, Badminton, Basketball, Fitness Training, Football (Girls and Boys), Hockey, Netball, Rugby, and Swimming. A supervised Homework Club also operates, and there are many after school GCSE classes.

Closed

Newtownabbey Community High School closed in August 2015 to merge with Monkstown Community School. The new school is called Abbey Community College, a play on words between the old schools.

References

External links

• School website