Past, Present & Future at Holy Trinity Primary School, Cookstown

Our Past: A Legacy of Mercy and Education

Holy Trinity Primary School was founded in 1992 through the amalgamation of two long-standing schools—St Brigid’s Convent Primary School and St Mary’s Boys’ Primary School. Both schools were originally established by the Sisters of Mercy, whose mission was rooted in compassion, education and service to the community.

The Sisters of Mercy began their work in Cookstown in 1891, providing primary, vocational and secondary education at a time when few opportunities existed for local children. This work was based on the philosophy of Sister Catherine McAuley, ensuring that we “fit the children for earth, without unfitting them for heaven.”

St Brigid’s was built adjacent to the Convent, and boys attended until age seven before transferring to the Boys’ School on Loy Street. St Mary’s was built in 1936 and St Brigid’s relocated to Convent Road in 1975.

Both schools and sites were merged in 1992 and Holy Trinity Primary School was born.  The merged school moved to the Convent Road site in 1998 after a significant extension was added and a new Nursery Unit opened on the former St Mary’s site in 2001.

This rich heritage continues to shape our ethos today—faith-based, inclusive and child-centred.

Our Present: A Thriving, Inclusive Community

Today, Holy Trinity Primary School stands proudly as a School of Sanctuary, welcoming children from all backgrounds and abilities. We offer integrated provision from Nursery through to P7.   Our school continues to develop and grow with our most recent addition of a 5 unit LSC/ASC specialist SPiM provision for children with additional needs which was officially opened in 2023.

As outlined in our ethos statement, Holy Trinity Primary School is guided by a clear and inclusive vision that places each child at the heart of our educational mission.

The school strives to create a welcoming, nurturing and safe environment where every pupil is valued and supported to reach their full potential. Rooted in Catholic values, the ethos of the school promotes respect, empathy, compassion and equality.

Our school’s values —

Tolerance, Respect, Inclusion, Nurture & Integrity Throughout our Years

is lived out daily in classrooms and corridors.

In Holy Trinity Primary School, we continuously strive to uphold these values in our everyday learning & teaching through our:

• caring ethos
• concern for the disadvantaged
• child centred provision
• learning for life
• high standards
• home school links
• faith based education
• serving of the local community
• praising and worshiping of God through prayer and every day acts

Strong partnerships with parents, parish and local businesses enrich our curriculum and extend learning beyond the classroom.

Our Future: Child-Centred, Capacity Building and Faith-Led

Looking ahead, our priorities reflect our belief that education should empower children not only academically, but socially, emotionally, and spiritually.

We are focused on:

• Raising standards in literacy, numeracy, and ICT to ensure every child is equipped for lifelong learning.
• Embedding a preventative curriculum that promotes wellbeing, resilience and safeguarding through proactive teaching and pastoral care.
• Expanding inclusive provision, ensuring that children of all abilities and backgrounds can thrive and reach their full potential.
• Strengthening pupil voice, encouraging children to take an active role in their learning and school life.
• Building capacity among staff and pupils to foster a collaborative, forward-thinking school community.

Inspired by the values of Sister Catherine McAuley and the founding Sisters of Mercy, we continue to place compassion, service and faith at the heart of everything we do.