Keep up to date with all the latest news happening in school at the moment.

• Year 7 Service of Commitment

  Wed 04 Feb 2026

  Today our Year 7 pupils took part in a Service of Commitment during our February school Mass. This special moment marks the beginning of their preparations for the Sacrament of Confirmation, an important step in their faith journey.

  We look forward to celebrating this sacrament together as a school community.

   

  Sacrament of Confirmation 

  Date: Tuesday 28th April 2026
  Time: 11.00am
  Venue: Mater Dei Church
  Celebrant: Bishop Alan McGuckian

   

  We keep all our Primary 7 pupils, their families, and sponsors in our prayers as they prepare for this joyful and meaningful occasion.

  

• Safer Internet Day - Exploring the Safe and Responsible Use of AI

  Wed 04 Feb 2026

  On Tuesday morning our Digital Leaders took part in a Dream Space Ambassador’s Workshop where they explored the theme of Safer Internet Day:

  “Smart tech, safe choices – Exploring the safe and responsible use of AI.”

   

  Today they introduced Safer Internet Day to the school via a virtual assembly. 

   

  The Digital Leaders have also been working hard to create a number of tasks for our pupils to complete on Safer Internet Day to include:

  P1-P3: Colouring Competition

  P4-P7: Just2easy Digital Footprint Activity.

   

  Prizes will be awarded to the winning entries in each category.        

   

  #saferinternetday

  

• Blessing of Throats - Feast of St. Blaise

  Tue 03 Feb 2026

  We were delighted to welcome Canon Colm to school today as we marked the Feast of St Blaise. St Blaise is known for caring for the sick, and there is a long held tradition of the Blessing of Throats on his feast day.

   

  Canon Colm kindly blessed the throats of our school choir members, using the candles that had been blessed on Christmas Day. It was a lovely, prayerful moment for the children.

   

  A big thank you to Canon Colm for visiting and for his continued support of our school community.

  

• Online Safety Parent Information Session

  Tue 03 Feb 2026

  Safer Internet Day is the UK’s biggest celebration of online safety. Each year we cover an online issue or theme that speaks to the things young people are seeing and experiencing online.

   

  Safer Internet Day 2026 is due to take place on Tuesday 10th February.  However, as we will be closed for Mid Term we will mark Safer Internet Day on 5th February 2026, with celebrations and learning based around the theme:

  “Smart Tech, Safe Choices – Exploring the Safe and Responsible Use of AI.”

   

  Each class will complete an online safety activity to reinforce acceptable online behaviour.

   

  To mark Safer Internet Day please find a link below to a parent information session on online safety which we receive as part of our annual subscription to Knowsley Council

   

  https://www.knowsleyclcs.org.uk/online-safety-parent-carer-session-january-2026/  

   

  We hope you find this useful and informative.

  

• A Special Peace Proms Surprise for Our School Choir

  Mon 02 Feb 2026

  Past pupils Adele and Odhran O’Dornan visited our school choir on Monday 2nd February. Our school choir are participating in the Peace Proms event in the SSE Arena on Sunday 1st March. Adele and Odhran are both members of the Cross Border Orchestra of Ireland, who accompany all the concerts of Peace Proms. Adele is the only female trumpet player in the CBOI and Odhran plays the clarinet.

   

  Adele and Odhran were accompanied by their dad and they treated the school choir to a variety of special gifts. All children received Peace Proms wristbands, keyrings, light sticks and some special Peace Proms teddy bears which can’t be purchased at the SSE Arena. Their visit was topped off with a special recorded message for our school choir from Greg Beardsell, the conductor of the CBOI. We are all very excited and motivated now for the upcoming event!

  

• Happy St Brigid’s Day!

  Fri 30 Jan 2026

  We were delighted to mark St Brigid’s Day, celebrated on 1st February, which also signals Ireland’s first day of spring. This special occasion is rich with Irish customs and traditions, including the much‑loved practice of making St Brigid’s crosses from rushes.

   

  Thank you to Canon Colm who kindly visited our school today to bless the crosses created by our Year 6 pupils with Miss McCauley last week.  The children were so proud to take their crosses home for the weekend, continuing a tradition that has been passed down through generations.

   

  It was a lovely way to welcome the first signs of spring and celebrate our Irish heritage together as a school community.

  

• January in St Joseph’s Nursery – A Month Full of Wonder!

  Fri 30 Jan 2026

  January has been a month bursting with curiosity, creativity and joyful learning in our Nursery Unit. From exciting shared adventures with new friends to hands‑on winter discoveries, our children have been fully immersed in meaningful play.

   

  We were delighted to welcome Crumlin Integrated Preschool for a Shared Education Stay and Play session. The children explored winter‑themed activities indoors and outdoors before enjoying a magical puppet show of The Gingerbread Man by Banyan Theatre. Laughter, chatter and new friendships filled the room, ending with a lovely sing‑along together.

   

  Our Winter topic brought plenty of hands‑on fun as the children investigated ice, rescued frozen polar animals and experimented with tools like hammers, warm water and salt. Alongside this, they enjoyed creating beautiful artwork, exploring stories about Arctic animals and completing seasonal jigsaws to support their fine‑motor skills.

   

  We also celebrated our budding Nursery Engineers, who used blocks and magnetic tiles to design all sorts of imaginative structures—from fairy houses to rockets! Through building and problem‑solving, the children developed important skills in collaboration, communication and early STEM thinking.

   

  A highlight of the month was our first Antrim Playball session, where the children practised spatial awareness, batting and aiming skills while learning the importance of teamwork and encouragement.

  It has been a fantastic start to the new year, and we look forward to sharing more moments of learning, exploration and joy in the months ahead.

  

• Walk Wheel Cycle Trust Recycled Bike Project

  Thu 29 Jan 2026

  Walk Wheel Cycle Trust are bringing new life to unused bikes and scooters by finding them new homes in local schools through the ‘Recycled Bike Project’.

   

  Through kind donations from members of the public, community groups and local cycling groups, bikes are being refurbished and repurposed as part of the Active School Travel Programme. Participating schools are gifted with a small fleet of bikes and scooters which will remain in school for years to come and will be used to give pupils access to cycle training. This is particularly beneficial to those who might not already own or have access to one at home.

   

  Project Officer, Johnny McCrystal is also running teacher training opportunities to help school staff be able to best utilise the resources by showing staff how to lead cycle skills sessions for children as well as ‘Learn to Cycle’ workshops to help pupils ride a bike for the very first time.

   

  “It’s great to have the support of St Joseph’s PS in this project and for their enthusiasm in seeing children be able to develop safe cycling skills at school. We hope that the bikes will provide opportunities for many pupils to practice these skills and to develop confidence in cycling.” Johnny McCrystal (Walk Wheel Cycle Trust, Project Officer)

  

• Peace Proms 2026 – Choir Rehearsals in Full Swing

  Wed 28 Jan 2026

  Our school choir is working incredibly hard as rehearsals get well under way for Peace Proms 2026. Excitement is building as pupils prepare to take to the stage at the SSE Arena Belfast on Sunday 1st March, where they will join hundreds of young voices in this inspirational celebration of music, unity and joy.

   

  The commitment, teamwork and enthusiasm shown by our choir so far has been fantastic. They are learning a vibrant mix of songs and building confidence each week—all while having great fun together.

   

  We’re very proud of their dedication and can’t wait to see them shine at this amazing event!

  

• Year 4-7 January Golden Assembly

  Wed 28 Jan 2026

  We rounded off January with a wonderful P4–7 Golden Assembly, celebrating all the hard work, kindness and achievements shown throughout the first weeks of 2026.

   

  A real highlight was the official introduction of Stella, our brand‑new school mascot to the Year 4-7 pupils.  The Pupil Council proudly led the presentation, sharing the story behind Stella, the work they have done to help create her, and how she represents everything we value at St Joseph’s. Stella will help shine a light on our school motto “Everyone matters, every moment counts” and remind us daily of the values we live out—Care, Trust, Respect, Honesty, Forgiveness, Inclusiveness, Acknowledgement and Perseverance.

   

  We celebrated pupils’ efforts and achievements through the presentation of Pupil of the Month certificates, Accelerated Reader awards—including the exciting announcement of two new Word Millionaires and two new Multi‑Word Millionaires—and the collection of this month’s Pebble Points for showing our focus value of Honesty. It was lovely to recognise not only learning in school, but also the fantastic accomplishments pupils achieve outside the classroom across a wide range of extra‑curricular activities.

   

  We finished our assembly by joining together in prayer to give thanks for a positive and hardworking first half of the school year and looking ahead with hope and excitement for the weeks to come.

   

  A bright and joyful way to end January—well done, everyone!