Terenure College Senior (Secondary) School is a Catholic, Fee-paying, Secondary School for the education of boys.
By enrolling in the College, parents/guardians and their son commit themselves to actively supporting and respecting the ethos of the College in particular with regards to our identity as a Catholic and Carmelite School. This will include participating in the religious and liturgical life of the College.
Parent(s)/Guardian(s) and their sons also commit themselves to accepting and supporting the College Code of Behaviour and College Regulations as will be constituted from time to time.
Address: Terenure College, Terenure, Dublin 6w.
The Chairperson of the Board of Management of the College is Mr. Frank Gallen.
The Principal is Fr. Éanna Ó hÓbain O. Carm.
Further detailed information on the College's ethos and activities are available in the College Prospectus, available upon request..
The College Calendar is published annually and updated throughout the year.
The school fees are of vital importance to the operation of the College. They are set each year by the College Management and are paid either by Direct Debit, in eight equal instalments, or in one payment at the start of the academic year. The issue of any outstanding debts must be resolved before a pupil progresses to the next year.
The financial and teaching resources of the school are provided by a combination of: school fees; fund raising; DES grants and teacher allocations. Implementation of the school plan and school policy must have due regard to resources and funding available.
The school operates within the regulations laid down, from time to time by the DES. The school follows the curricular programmes prescribed by the DES, which may be amended from time to time, in accordance with Sections 9 and 30 of the Education Act (1998).
Applications are welcome from parents/guardians at any time. Parents/guardians make application to the College by completing and returning an application form. Application Forms/Prospectus are available from the College Reception or can be forwarded upon request. The College also writes to local national schools annually informing them of our procedures and requesting they remind all prospective applicants to apply as soon as possible.
- The Acceptance of The Code of Discipline Form, signed by parent(s)/guardian(s) and pupil.
Parents of applicants for 1st Year (and who are not in the Junior School) will be invited to an Information Morning in October of the academic year when their son is in 5th Class. This invitation also requests parents/guardians to indicate their intention to pursue their application. Failure to respond to this invitation will be taken as an indication that the parents/guardians no longer wish to proceed with this application and consequently it will be removed from our files.
The offering of places for First Year will begin in late October/early November of the academic year preceding the desired year of entry (this will normally mean October/November of 5th Class).
- Sons of Past Pupils/sons of Teachers of the College and sons of persons related to members of the Carmelite Order.
- In order of date of application, pupils of our traditional Feeder Schools such as; St. Joseph's (Terenure), St. Pius X (Templeogue), St. Colmcille's (Knocklyon), St. Mary's (Rathfarnham), St. Killian's (Kingswood), Bishop Galvin's (Willington), Blessington National Schools, Divine Word (Marley Grange), Ballyroan N.S., Gaelscoil Knocklyon, Scoil Treasa/Scoil Carmel (Firhouse).
- Date Order Applications (from other National Schools).
Secondary School students must be aged 12 on the 1st of January in the calendar year following the child's entry into First Year (Birth Certificates will be requested).
It is envisaged that there will be no more than 30 students in any First Year class. Normally there will be five base classes in First Year. However, the Board of Management may from time to time increase the number of base classes in order to maintain a balance of pupil numbers across the entire school.
The College will write to all applicants who do not receive an offer asking them if they wish to be placed on a Waiting List. Further offers of places will be made as they become available.
Pupils are assessed after they have accepted the offer of a place. This assessment usually takes place in January (of year of entry). The purpose of this Assessment is to help the College establish the educational needs of each child.
For further information, parents/guardians should contact the Admissions Secretary and/or the Principal of the College.
The normal and usual point of entry to the school is First Year.
The College Authorities must have as their first concern the welfare of those who are currently pupils of Terenure College and for whom, therefore, Terenure College was their first choice.
College Management will only make an offer of a place in a year other than 1st Year after taking due cognisance of the best interests of those who constitute the pupil body of the College. College Management will have due regard as to the effect on class size, the dynamic of a particular group, discipline etc. College Management will only make an offer of such a place where it is considered advisable to do so.
This applies also to those who have left the College and who subsequently wish to return to the College.
- Reason for move etc.
Any pupil who upon the completion of Third Year wishes to transfer to the College may only be offered a place in Transition Year.
Applications for years other than First Year which are received prior to the date on which the State Examinations start will be deemed to become active on that date. An Admission's Committee will consider any such applications and will make a recommendation to the Manager. An interview of both the prospective pupil and his parent(s)/guardian(s) will be part of the application process. Applicants will receive notice of the decision of the College Management within 21 days of date when the application became active.
Admission to the College will strictly depend on adherence to the College's Code of Behaviour and College Regulations.
Where it is possible to offer places to some, but not all, applicant selection will be through a combination of the concerns raised above and the selection criteria for First Year where applicable.
• Parental choice in relation to enrolments.
• Respect for diversity of traditions, values, beliefs, languages and ways of life in society.
• Equality of access and participation in the school.
The College welcomes students with Special Educational Needs. However, the curriculum offered in the college is strongly academic and it may not suit all boys in allowing them to build upon their individual strengths.
Following the First Year Assessment in January, certain parents may be contacted by the Special Needs Teacher in order to arrange a meeting and to request copies of Psychological/Educational/Medical Reports. Copies of these reports will be retained on the student's personal file in the College. The College must be apprised of learning, emotional or disciplinary difficulties and may request further information if necessary in order to assist the College in planning to meet the individual's needs. In some cases further meetings with the Special Needs Teacher, the Principal, the First Year Form Master and the parents/guardians may be necessary in order to discuss the child's needs and the school's capacity to meet these needs. If further resources are required, requests should be made to the Department as soon as possible by both the College and the parents/guardians. The College may also liaise with the feeder primary school for access to this or further information.
It may be necessary to defer enrolment until the receipt of the assessment report, or other appropriate information, or until the provision of the appropriate resources by the Department of Education and Skills. Admission to the school of a child with a disability may be refused if, by virtue of the disability, it would make it impossible, or have a seriously detrimental effect on, the provision of the services of the school to other pupils or would result in more than nominal costs for the College.
The Code of Behaviour includes Reward and Discipline Procedures as well as the school policy on suspension and expulsion. All parents/guardians receive a copy of this Code and are required to sign a statement saying they have read and accept the Code. This statement is retained on the student's personal file in the College. The acceptance of the College's Code of Behaviour also includes the acceptance of any amendments to this Code and other College regulations as may be made from time to time.
Suspension may be imposed for a once off situation which warrants the serious sanction of Suspension or which requires the removal from the school of a pupil. Suspension may also be imposed for accumulated and persistent misconduct on the part of a pupil. Only the Principal or the Board of Management may suspend a pupil from the College. The Form Masters will advise the Principal and/or the Board of Management.
The expulsion of a pupil is the most serious disciplinary sanction that can be applied. Expulsion may be imposed for a once off situation which warrants the serious sanction of Expulsion or which requires the permanent removal from the school of a pupil. Expulsion may also be imposed for the accumulated and persistent grave misconduct on the part of a pupil. Only the School Board of Management may expel a pupil. After the Board of Management has expelled any pupil, his parents shall have the right to appeal the decision to the Trustees (i.e. The Provincial and Council of the Irish Province of Carmeiltes).
In accordance with Section 29 of the Education Act (1998), a decision to (1) permanently exclude a pupil from the school, or (2) suspend a pupil for a period of over 20 days in an Academic Year, or (3) refuse to enroll a pupil in the school, may be appealed to the Secretary General of the Department of Education and Skills by the parents/guardians of the pupil, or in the case of a pupil who has reached the age of 18 years, by the pupil himself.
This Admissions Policy may be updated from time to time. Any subsequent amendments will supercede any previous versions of the Policy.