Fight to save rural school

Fight to save rural school

8 October 2025

A CAMPAIGN is underway to save a local Catholic primary school from potential closure.

The Council for Catholic Maintained Schools (CCMS) is proposing to close St Malachy’s Primary School in Kilclief after 157 years.

Under the proposal, the school will shut by September 2027 with its pupils transferred to nearby St Joseph’s Primary School in Strangford, which will be expanded and given a new name.

St Malachy’s currently has 37 pupils – far below the number deemed sufficient by CCMS for a sustainable primary school.

Nothing formal has been issued to date, although parents have received letters from the principals of both schools.

In a strategic plan published in January, CCMS said it proposed to review maintained primary school provision in the Strangford and Kilclief area.

CCMS has said it will consult with parents, staff and governors at both schools later this year.

However, a campaign group set up to oppose any closure move insists it will not give up without a fight.

Mr John Hanna, chairman of the group’s steering committee, said the response from the Kilclief community has been “huge”.

He said the campaign group was set up after a “massive” protest meeting attended by over 150 people.

“There was hardly room to stand. Parents and past pupils were coming forward all wanting to do what they can to save the school,” he remarked.

“There is a massive groundswell of opposition. We’re not going to let the school close lying down.”

Campaigners were meeting yesterday with Strangford MP Jim Shannon and other politicians will be lobbied in the coming weeks.

A petition opposing the proposal is being drawn up and local people are being urged to make their views known directly to CCMS.

“We’re going to go door-to-door getting people to put their signatures on the petition,” Mr Hanna said.

“We’re going to swamp CCMS with written responses and we’ve got around 30 people working in groups who are acting as our foot soldiers on the ground.”

Mr Hanna claimed St Malachy’s is one of a number of rural Catholic primary schools earmarked for closure.

“The CCMS rationale is all about numbers,” he said. “They say a sustainable school should have a minimum of 104 pupils.

“St Joseph’s in Strangford currently has 80 pupils and St Malachy’s has 37. At one time St Malachy’s would have been the stronger school.”

Mr Hanna said there was no guarantee that all of the St Malachy’s children would transfer to St Joseph’s.

“I know some parents are saying they will not send their children to Strangford because of traffic and parking issues.”

He added: “We have to be hopeful. This school has been a vital part of the community for a long time.”

Mr Ciaran Clifford, principal of St Malachy’s, said closure would be a “devastating blow” for the community, but insisted that it was “business as usual” at the present time.

“At the minute it is only a proposal. No decision will be made in the foreseeable future,” he continued.

“St Malachy’s has been a massive part of the Kilclief community for over 150 years.”

Local SDLP councillor Aurla King said she “pledged her support to staff, parents, pupils and the wider community” in opposing the proposed closure.

Cllr King said St Malachy’s has been at the heart of the community for generations and “should be seen as an asset to build upon, not one to lose”.

She continued: “St. Malachy’s holds deep roots within our community. My own mother was once a pupil there, and this school has shaped countless lives over the years, providing not just education, but a real sense of belonging and care for local families.

“Closing it would be a devastating blow to the children who call it home and to the wider community that has supported it for decades.”

Cllr King urged CCMS to rethink the proposal and instead explore opportunities to expand what she described as “much-needed” special educational needs (SEN) provision on the site.

She said: “There is an ever-growing demand for SEN places right across the district.

“Rather than closing St. Malachy’s, we should be investing in it, adapting its facilities and resources to meet the needs of children who require additional support.

“That would not only preserve this vital local school, but strengthen educational provision for families across the area.”

Cllr King reaffirmed her commitment to stand alongside the community in the campaign to keep St. Malachy’s open.

She added: “Together, we can make sure the doors of this school remain open for generations to come.”