Principal's Welcome
I am delighted to welcome you to the St. Mary’s Grammar School website. Our school is a unique place with a long tradition of academic excellence and service to our local community.
Pupils join us at age eleven and usually leave aged eighteen, having grown in stature, wisdom and knowledge, but of equal importance, having developed as potential leaders, ready to make their mark on society.
Our core business is to educate young people and to prepare them for the opportunities and challenges of life. Pupils consistently achieve exceptionally highly, ranking first in Northern Ireland regularly; the school was recognised as Northern Ireland Secondary School of the Year in 2023 by the Sunday Times. Whilst academic outcomes are a key priority in the school, so too is the development of character, sincerity, goodness and kindness. Our school community, a huge strength of ours, is values-driven and this enables our pupils to be fulfilled and to learn to contribute to society in the widest sense.
As a school which is highly committed to the overall development of young people, the provision of opportunities and experiences outside the classroom is a priority for us. Our committed staff create and lead extra-curricular offerings in sport, music, drama, art, public speaking and many more in a host of areas too numerous to list. The spirit of community, also exemplified in many of our local GAA clubs, is celebrated through participation and success in our national games. The school have been MacRory Cup, Kirk Cup and Casement Cup champions in the last few years and perform to a high standard in boys and girls games, in a wide range of sports.
Currently, around 1100 pupils attend the school and their days are characterised by learning, developing self-awareness, building enduring friendships and stretching themselves to reach beyond their comfort zone. We believe that the key to success in any aspect of life is for an individual to feel cared for, to feel part of a community and to enjoy what they are doing. Pastoral Care permeates all aspects of our work and we aim to build relationships, with a culture of high expectations and the appropriate support to achieve them, in everything that we do.
