First Year Trip to Ballyhass Adventure Centre on May 1st

Dear Parent/Guardian, As part of the 1st year trip to Ballyhass Adventure Centre On May 1st, students must fill out an online waiver before they can participate in any activities. This is also a mobile phone free event. In an event of emergency, parents can contact school staff on 0871028472 during that day.

Plese follow the link below and fill out the required information. Your booking ref is: 162185 to gain access. Link: https://www.ballyhass.ie/sign-waiver 

Kind Regards, 
Rosie O Brien.

School Chaplain
Skibbereen Community School ,

Gortnaclohy, 
Skibbereen,
Co Cork.
Ph: 028 51172

W: www.skibbereencommunityschool.ie    


Mr. Jeremy Irons and the Green Schools Committee

On Tuesday 9th of April the SCS Green Schools Committee was delighted to welcome the well-known actor Jeremy Irons to our school to introduce the documentary film ‘Trashed’.  This film, which Jeremy produced, researched and narrated, highlights the many negative impacts of the waste that our lifestyle produces.

 It is a hard-hitting film in places but gets over the message of the importance of reducing our waste for health, environmental and social reasons.

 The film explores the various ways that societies have tried to deal with their trash, eg. dumps, incinerators and burying it, but shows that the massive volume of plastic that we are now producing has overwhelmed the systems and has polluted our soil, air, rivers and oceans with toxic chemicals that can have devastating effects on human health.

 The students watching the documentary found it very thought provoking and had some probing questions for Jeremy Irons at the end, to which he responded with honesty.  Things have not improved since the film was made in 2012, but he encouraged everyone to do their bit by encouraging their family members to cut down on buying plastic whenever they can eg. take your own bag to the shops and don’t buy fruit that’s wrapped in plastic.  Also, he asked us not to buy lots of fast fashion as clothes waste (which almost always contains an amount of plastic fibres) makes up a high proportion of the mountains of rubbish poisoning the planet.

 In talking with the Green Schools Committee afterwards he encouraged them to carry out some detective work to find out how much plastic waste in school is recycled and what happens to that recycling when it leaves the school.

 It was a sobering and thought-provoking afternoon, and all agreed that everybody should watch the film ‘Trashed’ to realise the effect plastic is having on our lives and the future lives of those who come after us.  We were very grateful to Jeremy Irons for taking the time to come and explore this important subject with us and for encouraging us to take responsibility for helping to take care of our world.

1st Year Girls Football

Well done to our 1st year girls football team who had a great win against Coláiste Choilm today.

Green Schools - Ways to Make a Difference

The Green Schools Club are starting a new initiative - Ways to Make a Difference - and are hoping to post a suggestion each week. Suggestion number two is as follows:

Cineáltas Anti-Bullying Flag

Well done to our second year SPHE class who officially put up our Cineáltas Kindness Flag in its permanent position today, as part our our anti-bullying campaign launched by our principal Mr. Anton O’Mahony.

We are very proud of the message that this flag sends out about the importance of kindness. This is a very important message, to be positive in life and to think of others.


TY Litter Picking

Pictured below are some of our 4th year students litter picking this week.

Many thanks to Mr. Jerome Dwyer Skibbereen Tidy Towns, Cork County Council and Ms. Orla O’Sullivan for organising.

Try Sailing Event for 1st Years

There is a ‘Try Sailing Event’ for first years .

Meeting with the Sailing Team on Tuesday 16th April 2024 in G29, to discuss upcoming events. 

No experience required.

All equipment will be supplied by the school.

Lots of fun to be had!

TY Paris Trip - Day 3

Students enjoyed a day at Disneyland Paris.

TY Paris Trip - Day 2

On day two, students visited the Montmartre area of Paris where they saw The Moulin Rouge, Le Moulin de la Galette, & the Café “Les Deux Moulins” from the film which they studied in TY called Amelie Poulain.

They visited the Sacré-Cœur Cathedral & strolled around the Artist area of La Place du Tertre. They saw the statue of Dalida, a famous French singer & actress who died in 1987.

Students then visited the PSG Paris Saint Germain stadium, who unfortunately lost their match to Barcelona last night.

They visited L’arc de Triomphe & climbed the 284 steps to the top.

From there they went to see the ‘tomb of the unknown solder’.

They visited L’hôtel de Ville ( Paris City Hall) followed by the Igor Stravinsky fountain designed by the artists Jean Tinguely and Niki de Saint Phalle, before sitting down in a French Crêperie for some galettes & crepes.

They saw the Eiffel Towel sparkle by night & experienced the Paris Metro.

Green Schools Club

The Green Schools Club are starting a new initiative - Ways to Make a Difference - and are hoping to post a suggestion each week. Suggestion number one is as follows:

TY Paris Trip - Day 1

Pictured below are our TY students in Paris.

They visited the Eiffel Tower (La Tour Eiffel), the Statue of Liberty & the Flame of Liberty Statue which is the lady Diana memorial situated over the tunnel where she died.

They finished day one with a boat trip on the River Seine on the French fly boats (bateaux mouches).

Munster Schools Team Sailing 2024

Congratulations to all our sailors for a stellar performance at the Munster Schools Sailing 2024 event hosted by Bantry Bay Sailing Club. 

AP flag was raised earlier in the morning with a delayed start due to lack of wind. As the day progressed so too did the conditions, with race officer Tim McCarthy having to battle with constantly changing wind directions.

In the end Captain Daisy Griffith's lead her team to overall third place, securing a place in the National School Sailing Final. It was a hard fought battle with the final flight of the day, sailed as a two v's two sail-off, for the third place podia. 

Captain Ava Scarlett's team must wait for 'wildcard' selections, with all eyes now turned towards the National's. 

'Fair seas and following Wind'

Fingers crossed for the National's!

Give Up for Gaza

Some pictures from fundraising events students and teachers took part in and organised for Gaza.

The aim was to create an awareness and raise much needed money for Gaza.

Different events took place during a week of fundraising including a bake sale,  presentations & charitable initiatives.

Many thanks to all involved, especially TY Home Economics students & teachers who organised the cake sale.


Bully-4-U: Anti-Bullying Workshop

On Wednesday 13th of March Skibbereen Community  School were delighted to welcome Bully 4U to give three workshops to all 2nd years.

It was an excellent presentation on bullying. All students were encouraged to stand up for themselves and to know what to do if they were bullied.

The school took the opportunity to launch its kindness flag also. 

Inter School Showjumping Competition March 2024

Congratulations to Mae Murphy 1st year and her four legged friend PoppyShock for a super clear round in the Showjumping Individual Class at a recent event in Maryville Stables and Equestrian Centre. 

Both Mae and PoppyShock represented our school with style and poise to complete their clear round. 

Sailing Team Training Day- Bantry Sailing Club

Many thanks to Bantry Sailing Club for hosting our Training Day and also to our coach Johnathon O'Shaughnessy. We were delighted to gain access to the ISA fleet of Fireflies. 

A great day on the water was had by all, from our seasoned sailors and our newer sailors to Team Racing.

All eyes are on our Munster event this coming Saturday 23rd March. Watch out for our school team and hoot them as you pass. 

Keep your fingers crossed for Fair Winds and Following Seas.

Well done to everyone. 


Seachtain Na Gaeilge

Pictures from the Céilí held last Friday in SCS as part of Seachtain Na Gaeilge.

Agricultural Science Talk

Once again our Agricultural Science students and farmers of the future were given a talk from Grassland Agro expert John O’Loughlin.

Discussions ranged from soil sampling and testing to grassland management and fertiliser application.

John highlighted its importance in today's climate.

Future careers and advice that the students could benefit from within the sphere of Agriculture were discussed.  

Special thanks to Mr. John O’Loughlin,  William Kingston, Ms. O’Brien, Ms. Dullea and Mr. Shanahan for organising the event. 

TY Road Safety Education

TY students experienced a virtual reality car crash on Tuesday. Students were educated on the five most prominent behaviours that cause car accidents.

As students move towards receiving their own driving licences, the valuable experience they obtained will hopefully keep them safe and away from the frightening statistics we have on Irish roads.

Remember to belt up, keep your eyes on the road and never ever use your phone or drink/drug drive.

Think safe and stay safe.