0 items
(Close Menu)

Category: Stranmillis News

Professional Learning Hubs: Strengthening School Partnerships 2025/2026

Posted on by Andrew McAteer

During the 2024/2025 academic year, the PGCE team introduced a new model of collaboration through the creation of Professional Learning Hubs across a range of special, nursery and primary schools. This model has been expanded even further for 2025/2026, offering student teachers richer opportunities to learn from expert practitioners in real school environments.

Harberton Special School

At Harberton Special School, PGCE students took part in classroom observations and a series of expert-led sessions delivered by school staff. These sessions focused on key areas of practice within a special school setting, including:

  • Communication, Speech and Language with Mr Troupe, Head of Communication
  • Behaviour Management, Classroom Structure and Routines with Mrs Devine, SENCo
  • Services within and linked to Special Schools with Mrs MacDonald, Vice Principal

Students greatly valued the opportunity to gain first-hand insight from knowledgeable staff over the three-week placement. They particularly appreciated exploring the school’s specialist approaches and the range of resources used to support pupils’ diverse learning needs.

Mrs MacDonald (VP) praised the students for their enthusiasm, commenting that it was “great to have the students in Harberton as always!”

Hardy Memorial Primary School, Richhill – Our Newest Professional Learning Hub

This year also saw an exciting new extension to the Professional Learning Hub model when PGCE students were welcomed into the Year 1 classrooms at Hardy Memorial Primary School. Teachers Mrs Hannah Irvine and Mrs Leanne Erskine provided a hands-on learning experience that highlighted the school’s commitment to high-quality play-based pedagogy.

Students engaged with children in their playrooms, not traditional classrooms, before taking part in an outdoor forest school session. Activities included:

  • Acting out the Nativity story in the sand tray
  • Cooking potatoes and apples in the mud kitchen
  • Hammering real nails in the Three Little Pigs Building Area
  • Toasting bread on the firepit
  • Creating traps for the Big Bad Wolf
  • Building wolf-proof dens

A surprise visit from the “Big Bad Wolf” delighted both the children and the student teachers! Students left inspired by the rich, imaginative and well-planned play experiences on offer.

They shared the following reflections:

  •  “The visit to Hardy Memorial was so insightful. The space was homely and nurturing and the children appeared to be thriving in it. It was so encouraging to see the range of playful learning experiences on offer, including risky play to develop the children’s resilience. The outdoor learning was strategically planned, fun and engaging for everyone involved. The children were confident and self-sufficient throughout – a reminder of how easy it is to underestimate our children’s capabilities and shows what can be achieved through considered vision, planning and teamwork.” (Rebekah)
  • “I really enjoyed getting to engage with the children and staff at Hardy Memorial Primary school and seeing the positive impact that playful learning makes. The children’s imaginations and enthusiasm during play showed how their playfulness is being nurtured and supported at school.” (Olivia)
  • “Today showed me that learning does not sit still, it runs, builds, laughs and blossoms through play.” (Jennifer)

Teacher Hannah Irvine also reflected on the visit, saying:

“Welcoming Stranmillis PGCE students into our P1 setting was such a joy, with our children proudly sharing their playful learning indoors, outdoors and at Forest School! We hope the students gained inspiration from our playful approach at Hardy and we wish them all the best on their upcoming Foundation Stage placements. We are really excited about our new partnership with Stranmillis as a Professional Learning Hub and we look forward to continuing to share good practice while celebrating the curiosity and confidence of our children!”

Thank you to Hardy Memorial PS for hosting us on our visit.

 

Stran SU raises over £29,000 with another spectacular Charity Week

Posted on by Andrew McAteer

Stranmillis University College Students’ Union celebrated its annual Charity Week from 3rd to 7th November, bringing together staff and students to raise money for three chosen charities: Abundant Life Uganda, The Simon Community NI, and The Niamh Louise Foundation. 

As always, the week showcased the vibrant spirit of the Stranmillis community, with a packed schedule of events designed to raise funds and bring people together in support of good causes.  

The week began on Monday with a Pool Tournament in the SU Common Room, while on Tuesday, the amazingly adventurous Stranded challenge – now in its second year – saw four pairs of students attempt to travel as far from Stranmillis as possible within 18 hours — without phones, keys, or significant funds. Their limited budget depended entirely on how much they had raised beforehand. Supporters followed their progress on Instagram via @stranmillis_su, cheering on teams Cameron and Scott, Charlie and Dylan, Aimee and Anna, and Larissa and Orlagh. Each of the teams did a tremendous job, wholeheartedly committing to the cause and getting as far away as they possible could.  

Aimee and Anna flew from Belfast City Airport and travelled a respectable 144 miles to Edinburgh.  

Charlie and Dylan, after a long morning in Belfast International Airport flew to Gran Canaria – 1,914 miles from Stranmillis.  

The top two teams both ended up in Turkey. Having flown out of Dublin Airport, Larissa and Orlagh’s final destination was 2111 miles away in Antalya, whilst Cameron and Scott flew from Belfast International Airport to Antalya before hopping on another flight to Cukurova Airport (near Tarsus), accumulating a total of 2,282 miles.  

Midweek brought one of the most anticipated events of the SU calendar — ‘Stran Does Strictly’. The glamorous dance competition returned with 12 couples taking to the stage for both a Student Show on Wednesday afternoon and a Public Show on Thursday evening. Contestants competed for the coveted Strictly trophy, with audience donations helping to boost their scores alongside judges’ marks. A massive congratulations to this year’s winners Isla and Joe who waltzed their way to victory, and well done to all the couples involved.  

A new addition to the Charity Week roster of events was Hunted, a large-scale, car-based version of hide and seek that took place across South Belfast, offering a light-hearted way for students to get involved while contributing to fundraising efforts. 

The week concluded with Off the Charts, a competition where four students (Reanne, Emily, Samuel and Tom) raced to raise the most money — but with a twist. The higher they climbed on the leaderboard, the worse their forfeit became. The forfeits were carried out live in Betty’s at 1pm, drawing a lively crowd.  

Once again, the Stranmillis SU Charity Week was a resounding success, celebrating generosity, teamwork, and creativity across campus.  

The total, although ever increasing, currently stands at an incredible £29,452! 

Speaking about the week, SU President, Jessica Martin, said, “We have been absolutely blown away by the generosity of the Stranmillis community- this week we have seen staff, students, friends and family unite to raise an incredible amount of money for our 3 amazing charities. All of the students involved in each of the events worked so hard in the planning and preparation for this week and really threw themselves into collecting donations. We are so proud of everyone who has been involved and want to extend our sincere thanks to all who donated. Our 3 charities are incredibly thankful and we know the money raised this week will be invaluable to them and the work they do. I am truly proud of everything that we as a student body have achieved this week- it is a testament to the diligence and generosity of the Stranmillis community.” 

You still have the opportunity to donate to any of the couples here: https://linktr.ee/StranSU 

Stranmillis RE Specialists visit the Ecclesiastical Capital of Ireland

Posted on by Andrew McAteer

The 2nd Year RE Area of Specialism students and their tutors, Jill Magennis and Anita Gracie, hopped into a minibus on Wednesday morning, headed west along the M1 and hopped out again in Armagh City for a day visiting churches of the 4 main Christian denominations. Due to the long history of Christian worship and practice in Armagh, there are two cathedrals (both called St. Patrick’s) and several churches in easy walking distance of each other. The students visited St. Mark’s Church of Ireland, First Armagh Presbyterian, Armagh Methodist Church and St. Patrick’s Roman Catholic Cathedral.

One of the students reflecting on their day out commented: “It was an engaging and insightful practical experience where we learned so much about the history, traditions and practices of each denomination through guided tours and conversations with church leaders (with a quick coffee stop along the way, of course!). A very interesting and beneficial hands-on addition to our course”.

Year 3 BEd Students Gain Fresh Insight into Play-Based Learning at Stranmillis Primary

Posted on by Andrew McAteer

Last week, some of our BEd Primary Year 3 students had the wonderful opportunity to visit Stranmillis Primary School as part of their optional module ‘Learning through a Play-based Curriculum in the Early Years’.

During the visit, students heard from Foundation Stage teachers Miss Gowdy and Ms Finney as they shared how they implement continuous provision to support progression in learning through purposeful, play-based experiences.

Year 3 student Hannah McIntyre reflected:

‘Our visit to Stranmillis Primary School was such an enjoyable and inspiring experience! Stepping into the Primary 1 and 2 classrooms, I noticed how calm, welcoming and thoughtfully designed the learning spaces were. The continuous provision areas were beautifully set up to encourage independence, creativity and curiosity. My friends and I all came away feeling so inspired and full of ideas for our own future classrooms. The visit really reinforced for me how powerful play can be in creating joyful, meaningful learning experiences for young children’.

Jill Magennis would like to extend a sincere thank you to Principal Mrs Wilson, Miss Gowdy and Ms Finney for welcoming our students and sharing their expertise on how play is thoughtfully organised, supported and evaluated to enhance children’s learning and development. It was a valuable and uplifting experience that encouraged our students to reflect deeply on their own developing practice and the importance of play in early years education.

 

Exploring effective school leadership in disadvantaged communities: new podcast

Posted on by Andrew McAteer

A report recently published by Stranmillis University College’s Centre for Research in Educational Underachievement (CREU), Effective School Leadership in Disadvantaged Communities, has been featured on the podcast Education Matters.

Two of the report’s authors, Professor Noel Purdy OBE and Dr Emilia Symington, were invited by host Paul Hazzard to discuss their findings about what kinds of leadership can help schools thrive against the odds.

Funded by the James Kane Foundation and the Mary Ann McCracken Foundation, the study was inspired by the Independent Review of Education in Northern Ireland (2023) and set out to identify what makes schools in areas of high deprivation succeed. Analysing data from 190 schools, the Stranmillis research team — which also included Dr Mark Ballentine, Dr Karen Orr, Dr Glenda Walsh and Dr Katie Tate — identified 13 schools where pupils consistently achieved excellent GCSE results despite challenging circumstances.

Through in-depth interviews with principals, the team uncovered five key themes that underpin leadership success: Clarity of Vision, Championing Children, Connection, Character, and Continuation.

At the heart of their findings is a powerful message — that leadership grounded in values, relationships and belonging can overcome situational disadvantage.

Professor Purdy explained, “The most effective leaders understood that their vision needed to be owned by everyone — staff, pupils, parents and the wider community.”

Dr Symington added, “These leaders were relentlessly optimistic. They refused to define children by statistics.”

The research highlights the moral purpose and quiet strength of school leaders who lead with conviction, empathy and integrity. It also calls for greater investment in developing future leaders to ensure that this wealth of experience and wisdom continues to benefit schools in disadvantaged areas.

The episode of the Education Matters podcast can be viewed on YouTube above, or you can listen on Spotify here: https://shorturl.at/8Hf5p

You can read the report for yourself here, and watch the online research briefing here.

 

Centre of Digital Innovation and Technology (CDIT) Wins “Digital and Creative Excellence Award”

Posted on by Andrew McAteer

The Centre of Digital Innovation and Technology (CDIT), a pioneering collaborative framework, has been honoured with the “Digital and Creative Excellence Award” at the prestigious Belfast Chamber Business Awards.

CDIT is a multi-disciplinary partnership between Belfast Metropolitan College, Stranmillis University College, Queens University Belfast, and key industry partners. The Centre’s core mission is to advance digital innovation and technology through a skills-based approach, enabling industry and academia to co-create an educational experience for students built upon project-based learning.

The award recognises the dedication and impact of CDIT’s work in fostering industry-relevant skills and driving digital transformation.

Dr. Irene Bell expressed her delight at the win, stating, “We are thrilled that the dedication and hard work of CDIT has been recognised by the Belfast Chamber Business Awards. This honour validates the power of our collaborative model. It’s fantastic to see our innovative courses, such as the fully accredited qualification in ‘Mastering the Digital Classroom’ and the incredibly successful ‘Playful Computing Conference’, making a real difference in equipping initial teacher education students with essential digital skills.” This skills-based approach is not just about learning; it’s about enabling future leaders and professionals.

The CDIT framework provides a shared environment that ensures the education pipeline is directly aligned with the current and future needs of the digital economy. By placing students in a co-created, project-based setting, the partnership is successfully bridging the gap between academic theory and practical, real-world application.

This win reaffirms CDIT’s position as a leader in educational innovation and a crucial player in supporting the digital creative sector in Belfast and beyond.”